World Brief
FP’s flagship evening newsletter guiding you through the most important world stories of the day. Delivered weekdays.

Modi Meets Russian Security Official

The meeting, which came the same week that India participated in Biden's second Summit for Democracy, is emblematic of India's balancing act.

By , a global affairs journalist and the author of The Influence of Soros and Bad Jews.
The secretary of Russia's Security Council, Nikolai Patrushev, attends an expanded meeting of the Russian Defense Ministry board at the National Defense Control Center in Moscow.
The secretary of Russia's Security Council, Nikolai Patrushev, attends an expanded meeting of the Russian Defense Ministry board at the National Defense Control Center in Moscow.
The secretary of Russia's Security Council, Nikolai Patrushev, attends an expanded meeting of the Russian Defense Ministry board at the National Defense Control Center in Moscow, on Dec. 21, 2022. SERGEY FADEICHEV/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images

Welcome to today’s Morning Brief.

Welcome to today’s Morning Brief.

Our recent survey revealed that Morning Brief readers deeply value FP’s international perspective on the world and showed that our readers span the globe.

We’ve listened to you: That’s why we’re revamping this newsletter to better reflect our global outlook and readership.

Starting April 3, we’re launching FP World Brief, a daily newsletter that will replace Morning Brief. It will run Monday through Friday and will hit inboxes at 7 p.m. Eastern.

We’ll still bring you “24 hours in 5 minutes,” as a reader recently described Morning Brief. And, of course, Odds and Ends isn’t going anywhere. Most excitingly, it will have a new full-time writer: Alexandra Sharp. You’ll hear more about her in her own words soon! Till then, keep an eye out for FP World Brief, coming to an inbox near you!

On a personal note: It has been a privilege and a pleasure to fill in as your Morning Brief writer these past few months. Thank you for reading.

And now, for the last time in its current form: Today, we’re looking at a reported meeting between a Russian security official and India’s prime minister, the arrest of a U.S. journalist in Russia, and Jair Bolsonaro’s return to Brazil.


Top Russian Security Official Reportedly Meets with Modi

Nikolai Patrushev, the secretary of Russia’s Security Council, met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a discussion of “matters of bilateral cooperation,” according to the Security Council. He was in India for a Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting. (India and China are also members of the organization.)

Neither side shared details of the contents of the discussions.

Washington has courted New Delhi as a partner in democracy against autocracy, inviting it to U.S. President Joe Biden’s annual democracy summits, and more specifically against China. But India is also a long-standing partner of Russia, from which it gets the majority of its defense equipment. India has abstained from censuring—or supporting—Russia in most international fora, but it has also continued to import Russian energy, and indeed has increased those purchases. In January, it was reported that India was importing 33 times more Russian oil than a year prior.


What We’re Following Today 

Former U.S. President Donald Trump indicted. The former president and a 2024 Republican presidential candidate, was indicted Thursday on charges relating to a 2016 hush-money payment made to a porn star. It’s the first time a former U.S. president has faced criminal charges. Trump is expected to be arraigned in New York on Tuesday.

U.S. journalist arrested in Russia. Russia-based Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, 31, was detained in Russia, which has accused him of espionage. The Journal vehemently denies the allegations. Gershkovich’s parents came to the United States from the Soviet Union. “In the strongest possible terms, we condemn the Kremlin’s continued attempts to intimidate, repress, and punish journalists and civil society voices,” said U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre reiterated that the White House does not believe it is safe for Americans to travel to Russia.

Bolsonaro back in Brazil. Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro arrived back in Brazil after three months in the state of Florida, during which time some of his supporters stormed government buildings. He was greeted by hundreds of supporters in Brasília. He told one television network, “I’m without a mandate, but I’m not retired.”


Keep an Eye On

EU chief says Europe must reassess relations with China ahead of visit. Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, has said that China’s transition from an era of reform to one of control means that Europe must “de-risk.” The EU’s relationship with Beijing, she said, has become “more distant and more difficult.” While delivering a speech in Brussels, von der Leyen said, “How China continues to interact with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s war will be a determining factor for EU-China relations going forward.” Von der Leyen and French President Emmanuel Macron are traveling to China next week.

China warns the United States of “serious confrontation.” In other China news, Tsai Ing-wen, president of Taiwan, landed in New York. The United States had previously tried to stress that this visit, a stopover on the way to Central America, was in line with precedents set by other, earlier visits from Taiwan and so should not be taken as provocation or cause for response from China. However, on her return trip, Tsai may meet with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, which China has said could lead to a “serious confrontation.”


Thursday’s Most Read

DoD’s Making a List—and Checking It Twice by Jack Detsch and Robbie Gramer

Israel Is Somewhere It’s Never Been Before by Aaron David Miller and Daniel C. Kurtzer

How to Benchmark Victory in Ukraine by Liana Fix


Odds and Ends 

Surf’s up and up and up. Japan’s Seiichi Sano turns 90 this year. Sano is, according to Guinness World Records, the world’s oldest male surfer. Sano told reporters, “I think it would be interesting to try to surf until I’m 100. I think I take better care of myself when I have goals like this. Even now, I take better care of myself than I did before.”


That’s it for today.

For more from FP, visit foreignpolicy.com, subscribe here, or sign up for our other newsletters. If you have tips, comments, questions, or corrections you can reply to this email. 

 

Emily Tamkin is a global affairs journalist and the author of The Influence of Soros and Bad Jews. Twitter: @emilyctamkin

Join the Conversation

Commenting on this and other recent articles is just one benefit of a Foreign Policy subscription.

Already a subscriber? .

Join the Conversation

Join the conversation on this and other recent Foreign Policy articles when you subscribe now.

Not your account?

Join the Conversation

Please follow our comment guidelines, stay on topic, and be civil, courteous, and respectful of others’ beliefs.

You are commenting as .
Tags: India, War

More from Foreign Policy

Keri Russell as Kate Wyler walks by a State Department Seal from a scene in The Diplomat, a new Netflix show about the foreign service.
Keri Russell as Kate Wyler walks by a State Department Seal from a scene in The Diplomat, a new Netflix show about the foreign service.

At Long Last, the Foreign Service Gets the Netflix Treatment

Keri Russell gets Drexel furniture but no Senate confirmation hearing.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and French President Emmanuel Macron speak in the garden of the governor of Guangdong's residence in Guangzhou, China, on April 7.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and French President Emmanuel Macron speak in the garden of the governor of Guangdong's residence in Guangzhou, China, on April 7.

How Macron Is Blocking EU Strategy on Russia and China

As a strategic consensus emerges in Europe, France is in the way.

Chinese President Jiang Zemin greets U.S. President George W. Bush prior to a meeting of APEC leaders in 2001.
Chinese President Jiang Zemin greets U.S. President George W. Bush prior to a meeting of APEC leaders in 2001.

What the Bush-Obama China Memos Reveal

Newly declassified documents contain important lessons for U.S. China policy.

A girl stands atop a destroyed Russian tank.
A girl stands atop a destroyed Russian tank.

Russia’s Boom Business Goes Bust

Moscow’s arms exports have fallen to levels not seen since the Soviet Union’s collapse.