France’s new nuclear doctrine. French President Emmanuel Macron announced a new nuclear doctrine of “advanced deterrence” in a speech yesterday, saying France would expand its nuclear arsenal for the first time in decades. It could also temporarily deploy some of its nuclear weapons to European allies. “To be free, one must be feared,” Macron said. He cited the shifting international security environment and U.S. encouragement for Europe to take greater responsibility for its own defense.
Canada-India nuclear energy deal. A Canadian firm will supply uranium to India from 2027 to 2035 in a $1.9 billion deal, the office of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said yesterday. In addition to nuclear energy, the countries also broadly agreed to boost cooperation on critical minerals, defense, and artificial intelligence. The announcement came during Carney’s visit to New Delhi, during which he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi affirmed their countries’ “strong, resilient, and forward-looking partnership.”
U.S. sanctions on Rwanda. The United States sanctioned Rwanda’s military and four of its top officials yesterday, blaming them for backing M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and undermining U.S. efforts to strike a peace deal there. Rwanda’s government said the sanctions “misrepresented the reality” of the conflict.
Cuba signals economic shift. The country should make “urgent” changes to its “economic and social model,” President Miguel Díaz-Canel said, state media reported yesterday. These include increasing autonomy for local governments and the private sector and “resizing of the state apparatus.” Rubio has urged Cuba to increase permissions for private enterprise as the United States restricts oil flows to the country’s public sector.
Ukraine’s EU ambitions. Ukraine will complete the technical requirements to start negotiations on its European Union (EU) accession process within days, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told reporters yesterday. Though Ukraine became an EU candidate soon after Russia’s 2022 invasion, Hungary’s opposition has prevented the unanimous approval needed to open accession talks.
New UN Secretary-General candidate. Burundi has nominated former Senegalese President Macky Sall as a candidate for the next Secretary-General of the United Nations, a UN spokesperson confirmed yesterday. The selection process is slated to begin by the end of July. Three other candidates have been announced: former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, the Argentine head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, and former Costa Rican Vice President Rebeca Grynspan.
China’s nuclear-armed subs. China is building submarines with capabilities to target the United States from waters close to the Chinese mainland, the head of U.S. naval intelligence said in testimony submitted to a congressional hearing yesterday. At present, Chinese ballistic-missile submarines need to be in the vicinity of an island chain that includes Japan, the Philippines, and Taiwan, to target parts of the United States, he said. China’s push for naval modernization comes in contrast to the United States, which has been slow to build new submarines.
Zimbabwe prisoner release. Authorities yesterday began releasing some four thousand detainees as part of an effort to relieve prison overcrowding. Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi said last month the government would grant amnesty to prisoners who had shown “significant progress in their rehabilitation.” The initiative came amid anti-government sentiment over a plan to extend the president’s term until 2030.
