China Holds First Security Talks in Years With Japan

Welcome to today’s Morning Brief, where we’re looking at China and Japan’s security talks, a deadly Israeli raid, and Somali refugees fleeing for Ethiopia.

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China and Japan held their first formal security talks in four years on Wednesday, an attempt to stabilize their relationship.

China is Japan’s largest trading partner, but their different geopolitical postures have seen them increasingly at odds, particularly as Tokyo worries Beijing will move militarily on Taiwan.

China expressed concern with Japan’s military buildup. Late last year, Japan said it would double its defense spending over the course of the next five years to try to deter China. China currently spends more than four times as much as Japan on its military, and it increased military spending by 7.1 percent last year.

Japan, in turn, criticized China’s close ties to Russia as well as its use of spy balloons (though China has denied the use of spy balloons).

While Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister Sun Weidong was conducting the meeting with his Japanese counterparts, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had a meeting of his own with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. “Russian-Chinese relations were proceeding as planned,” Putin said, adding that the two countries would meet “new milestones” together.

Putin, who invaded Ukraine a year ago, said the China-Russia relationship was important for stabilizing the international relationship, while Wang said, “A crisis is always an opportunity.” Both officials stressed the need to take a “multipolar” approach to world affairs, an apparent swipe at the United States.

Israeli troops killed 11 Palestinians in West Bank raid. According to medics, Israeli forces killed 11 Palestinians, including four civilians, one of whom was a 14-year-old boy, in an operation in Nablus. More than 100 Palestinians were wounded.

Israeli authorities said troops were trying to detain militants and came under fire. There were no Israeli casualties. The United Nations said 2022 was the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank killed by Israeli forces since 2005. According to the Palestinian health ministry, 61 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces so far this year. According to CNN, that includes Palestinians killed while attacking Israelis, targeted militants killed in raids, people “clashing” with Israeli forces during raids, and civilian bystanders.

Thousands of Somali refugees flee for Ethiopia. More than 60,000 Somali refugees have fled for Ethiopia after fighting escalated in the disputed city of Las Anod in the unrecognized self-governing region of Somaliland. Tensions have been increasing between locals and Somaliland’s governing authorities for weeks. The dispute pits the Dhulbahante clan against Somaliland’s authorities; the clan is demanding its own federal state within Somalia.

According to the United Nations, the refugees arrived in a part of Ethiopia suffering from drought. The United Nations has also said of the 185,000 displaced persons from Las Anod and the surrounding region, 89 percent are women and children. At least 82 people have died from fighting, which has included the shelling of areas where civilians live.

French drought alert. France, which has had no significant rainfall for a month, is facing drought restrictions. Local officials are assessing the situation “territory by territory.” According to Météo-France, the country’s national weather agency, last year was the hottest on record and this winter was the driest since 1959. “Soft” restrictions may be imposed next month to try to avoid catastrophe this summer. Experts believe the next few months will prove decisive for France.

Italy, like France, was severely hit by heat last summer, and a state of emergency was declared in five regions around the Po river because of the drought. Water taxis and gondolas in Venice were unable to move around due to low water levels. The Alps have seen significant snow reduction over the past several decades; the mountain range is the most important water source for supplying rivers in Europe.

• Why the West Is Afraid of Ukraine’s Victory by Vasyl Cherepanyn

• The Return of the Russia Question by Alexey Kovalev

• China’s Checkbook Diplomacy Has Bounced by Christina Lu

Sphere of the unknown. A mysterious metal ball washed up on a Japanese beach on the coastline of Hamamatsu city. Its interior is apparently hollow. Experts determined via examination that it was not an immediate threat.