Important Takeaways:
- Russian and US diplomats say the relationship is worse than at any time since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis…
- “In the context of the increasing confrontation in Russian-American relations, which are teetering on the verge of rupture due to the fault of Washington, trips to the United States of America privately or out of official necessity are fraught with serious risks,” Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, told a news briefing.
- “We urge you to continue to refrain from trips to the United States of America and its allied satellite states, including, first of all, Canada and, with a few exceptions, European Union countries, during these holidays,” she said.
- Both Moscow and Washington say their citizens have been wrongfully imprisoned and their diplomats harassed increasingly as relations soured, though they both defend convictions by their own justice systems.
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Important Takeaways:
- The Biden administration has secured the release of three Americans from detention in China in exchange for unnamed Chinese persons held in the U.S.
- China released Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung after years of diplomatic negotiations between the administration and Chinese officials.
- The U.S. government considered the trio to be wrongfully detained on bogus charges. Mr. Swidan had been detained since 2012 on a drug conviction, while Mr. Li and Mr. Lueng were accused of espionage.
- Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat, said Wednesday he worked for years to release Mr. Li, a Long Island resident. He also credited President Biden for raising the detainees’ plight with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
- “For the families of those Americans newly freed by the Chinese government, this Thanksgiving there is so much to be thankful for,” Mr. Schumer said. “Soon, Kai Li will finally be reunited with his family because President Biden and his Administration also kept the faith and never stopped working to secure Mr. Li’s release and the release of other Americans wrongfully detained by the Chinese government.”
- The Congressional-Executive Commission on China in September said there are more Americans held in China than anywhere else in the world.
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Important Takeaways:
- The United States is drawing up contingency plans for military deployments in Japan and the Philippines in case of an emergency over Taiwan, Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported.
- A US Marine regiment which possesses the multiple-launch HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) would be deployed along Japan’s Nansei island chain stretching from Kyushu to Yonaguni near Taiwan, Kyodo said.
- From an early stage, if a Taiwan contingency becomes highly imminent, temporary bases will be set up on inhabited islands based on US military guidelines for dispatching marines in small formations to several locations, the report added.
- Japan’s military is expected to mainly engage in logistical support for the marine unit, including supplying fuel and ammunition, it said.
- Kyodo added that the US Army would deploy Multi-Domain Task Force long-range fire units in the Philippines.
- Asked about the report on Monday, Beijing’s foreign ministry said that Taiwan is an “inalienable part of China’s territory”.
- “China firmly opposes relevant countries using the Taiwan issue as an excuse to strengthen regional military deployment, provoke tension and confrontation, and damage regional peace and stability,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said.
- China is building up its military capacity while ramping up pressure on self-governed Taiwan.
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Important Takeaways:
- Vladimir Putin has announced that Russia tested a new intermediate range missile in a strike on Ukraine.
- In a surprise address to the nation, the Russian president warned Moscow “had a right” to use the missile and other weapons against countries that have allowed Kyiv to use their missiles to strike Russia, such as the US and Britain.
- Ukraine used British-supplied Storm Shadow missiles to strike inside Russia for the first time, a day after using US-made ATACMs to hit a military facility 110km from the Ukrainian border.
- Putin’s surprise address came after Ukraine accused Russia of firing an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which can carry both conventional and nuclear warheads, for the first time in the war.
- UN weapons experts had initially cast doubt on the claim by saying that under an international convention, the Kremlin would have to inform the US more than 24 hours ahead of firing an intercontinental ballistic missile.
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Important Takeaways:
- Ukraine has the resources and expertise to indigenously produce a large quantity of nuclear weapons at short notice if it was forced to do so, a briefing document meant for top government figures allegedly says, a report states.
- A briefing produced for the Ukrainian defense ministry allegedly explaining to policy makers that the country could rapidly develop rudimentary nuclear bombs from spent fuel rods and long-range ballistic missiles to carry them states this could be achieved in just months.
- Claimed as an exclusive by The Times of London, the document is presented by the newspaper as illustrating a potential backstop for the country to defend itself from the Russian Federation if the United States under a Trump Presidency withdrew military support. President Trump has made clear he wishes to bring peace to Europe quickly, but has not yet revealed how. Many of the options open to him do not align with the official Kyiv policy as the only acceptable end to the war being total victory over Russia.
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Important Takeaways:
- The US has issued a stark ultimatum to Israel, warning it must relax restrictions on the flow of aid into and around Gaza lest it face being cut off from arms imports.
- The threat, delivered in a letter penned by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, constitutes Washington’s strongest warning to Israel over the worsening humanitarian situation in the Palestine enclave.
- Washington’s top diplomat cited the strict controls Israel is imposing, including ‘burdensome and excessive’ restrictions on import materials and the denial of most humanitarian movements between northern and southern Gaza.
- ‘Failure to demonstrate a sustained commitment to implementing and maintaining these measures may have implications for US policy… and relevant US law,’ the letter concluded, citing a section of the Foreign Assistance Act, which prohibits military aid to countries that impede the delivery of humanitarian assistance.
- It comes at a time when the threat of escalation in the Middle East appears at an all-time high.
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Important Takeaways:
- US officials tell Axios that the Biden administration is increasingly distrustful of what Israel is saying about its military and diplomatic plans.
- Two of the officials tell the outlet that White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer on Friday that the US expects “clarity and transparency” from Israel over its plans for a potential attack on Iran after Tehran fired some 200 ballistic missiles at Israel last week.
- The officials note that any Israel strike would have an impact on US forces in the region.
- An official says that Sullivan’s message was a signal that if the US is not given a heads-up as to Israel’s plans, it won’t necessarily join a coalition to defend Israel against a potential future attack from Iran.
- The report says the US is also concerned about the most recent operation launched by the IDF in north Gaza, despite the fact that Israel has told Washington that the evacuation orders for civilians there will not lead to a permanent displacement of the population.
- “They tell us what we want to hear — the problem is lack of trust,” a US official says.
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Important Takeaways:
- U.S. President Joe Biden announced more than $8 billion in military assistance for Ukraine on Thursday to help Kyiv “win this war” against Russian invaders, using a visit by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to make a major commitment.
- The aid includes the first shipment of a precision-guided glide bomb called the Joint Standoff Weapon, with a range of up to 81 miles (130 km).
- The bulk of the new aid, $5.5 billion, is to be allocated before Monday’s end of the U.S. fiscal year, when the funding authority is set to expire.
- Another $2.4 billion is under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which allows the administration to buy weapons for Ukraine from companies rather than pull them from U.S. stocks.
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Important Takeaways:
- The raid on Sunday was the first ground operation the IDF has conducted in recent years against Iranian targets in Syria.
- The destruction of the factory appears to be a significant blow to an effort by Iran and Hezbollah to produce precision medium-range missiles on Syrian soil.
- Two sources said Israel briefed the Biden administration in advance of the sensitive operation and the U.S. didn’t oppose it.
- Two sources with direct knowledge told Axios the Iranians began building the underground facility in coordination with Hezbollah and Syria in 2018 after a series of Israeli airstrikes destroyed most of the Iranian missile production infrastructure in Syria.
- According to the sources, the Iranians decided to build an underground factory deep inside a mountain in Masyaf because it would be impenetrable to Israeli air strikes.
- The sources claimed the Iranian plan was to produce the precision missiles in this protected facility near the border with Lebanon so that the delivery process to Hezbollah in Lebanon could take place quickly and with less risk of Israeli airstrikes.
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Important Takeaways:
- The head of the U.S. Indo-Pacific command, in the first direct communications in years with a senior Chinese general in charge of regional forces, warned Beijing was engaged in “dangerous” incidents in the South China Sea, U.S. officials said Tuesday.
- Sam Paparo held the video teleconference with Gen. Wu Yanan, commander of the People’s Liberation Army southern command, on Monday and urged his forces to abide by international law in the South China Sea. China has made expansive sovereignty claims to the strategic waterway that are rejected by the U.S. and smaller countries around the region.
- Monday’s meeting was the first time in more than two years that a regional PLA commander spoke to a commander of the Hawaii-based command, despite repeated efforts to resume direct communications the American side believes will reduce tensions.
- The Pentagon, under Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, has been pressing the command to resume regular talks with Chinese regional military leaders to “clarify intent” and reduce the risk of a U.S.-China military exchange. The talks between the two commanders were described as “constructive and respectful.”
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