Hamas approves truce. Hamas accepted a plan for a ceasefire presented by Arab mediators, senior official Basem Naim said yesterday. While he did not give further details, an unnamed Egyptian official told the Associated Press that the proposal is similar to a previous one accepted by Israel and stipulates the negotiation of a lasting ceasefire. Egypt and Qatar sent the proposal to Israel, a senior Egyptian official said.
Wildfires in Spain. Fires have burned a record 1,344 square miles of the country this year, the EU’s Earth observation program said yesterday. The bloc’s firefighting force has already been mobilized more than sixteen times this year, more than in the entirety of 2024. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called the fires “accelerating effects of the climate emergency.” Europe is the fastest-warming continent in the world.
Germany’s tariff demand. The United States must follow through on a previously agreed pledge to lower tariffs on Europe-made cars before it can formalize a preliminary trade deal with the EU, a German government spokesperson said yesterday. Late last month, Washington and Brussels announced a framework for a trade agreement that would have the bloc direct hundreds of billions of dollars worth of investment into the United States.
Crypto for Thailand tourists. Thailand will test a program in which tourists can exchange digital assets for the local currency, the baht. The pilot is due to begin in the fourth quarter of this year. Bangkok is trying to stimulate the tourism sector; the country has seen a slump in Chinese tourists in particular after the January kidnapping of a Chinese actor near the Thailand-Myanmar border.
Pyongyang’s nuclear pledge. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said the country should move forward with the “rapid expansion of nuclearization” and condemned annual joint U.S.-South Korea military drills that are currently taking place. South Korea’s new leader has pledged to improve ties with its northern neighbor but said it still aims for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, which Kim rejects.
U.S.-Taiwan security ties. Taiwan’s foreign ministry said today that the island’s security must be a result of “its own efforts.” The statement came after Trump said that Chinese President Xi Jinping told him China would not invade Taiwan during Trump’s term. Taipei closely monitors the interactions between Beijing and Washington, a foreign ministry spokesperson said.
Japan eyes export support. The Japanese government plans next year to introduce multi-year subsidies for companies investing in semiconductors, rare earths, and shipbuilding across Southeast Asia and other emerging markets, Nikkei reported. Doing so would require altering a domestic economic security law. The government is studying using the state-funded Japan Bank for International Cooperation to incentivize some of the investments.
DRC-rebel talks. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and M23 rebels missed a deadline yesterday to reach a peace deal, which they committed to doing around a month ago. Qatar is mediating the negotiations. On Sunday, M23 called for a prisoner release before the next round of talks.
