Three Crises, One Message: The World Needs Better Leadership
South Africans fighting for Russia, Japan–China tensions over Taiwan, and a U.S. peace plan for Ukraine that’s going nowhere. The global order is fraying fast
In an exclusive World Briefing for my paid community, I connect the dots between at least two under-reported but fast-moving stories: South Africans heading to Russia’s war; the sharp deterioration in Japan–China relations over Taiwan. And Washington’s increasingly unworkable Ukraine peace process. I also explain why Turkey — not the United States - may now be the only actor with the leverage to steer talks back to reality.
Paid subscribers: scroll down to watch the full video analysis ⬇️⬇️⬇️
Ukraine’s security chief says he is hoping to arrange for President Volodymyr Zelensky to visit the US “at the earliest suitable date” this month, as diplomatic attempts to end the war continue. Rustem Umerov, the head of Ukraine’s security council, said on Tuesday the US and Ukraine had reached “a common understanding on the key terms of the agreement discussed” at previous talks in Geneva. The White House has not commented on the prospect of Trump-Zelensky talks. Meanwhile, US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll has been meeting Russian representatives in Abu Dhabi. It is not known who is in the Russian delegation. Umerov said his team “look forward” to organising Zelensky’s US visit “at the earliest suitable date in November to complete final steps and make a deal” with US President Donald Trump. Earlier, a US official travelling with Driscoll in Abu Dhabi briefed reporters that Ukraine had agreed to the peace deal with minor details to be sorted out. Asked to confirm this, the administration pointed the BBC to Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s comments in Geneva on Sunday, when he said higher-level discussions would still be needed to finalise the agreement. The gap between the terms that Ukraine and Russia will accept is still very wide and the Kremlin is unlikely to agree to the kind of deal that Kyiv may approve. Leaders in Kyiv and Europe had criticised the initial draft of a 28-point US peace plan which emerged last week, calling it too favourable to Russia. Counter-proposals - reportedly drafted by the UK, France and Germany - excluded any recognition of Russian-held regions, raised Ukraine’s permitted army size, and left the door open to Ukraine joining Nato. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov – who is not attending the meeting in Abu Dhabi – said on Tuesday that the Kremlin was yet to receive the “interim” version of the revised plan, adding that Moscow’s view was that it should reflect the “spirit and letter” of the Alaska talks between Trump and President Vladimir Putin in August.
German and Romanian fighter jets scrambled on November 25 to track the latest in a series of drone incursions into Romania’s airspace as Russia continues to attack targets just across the Danube River in neighboring Ukraine.
Two drones entered the NATO-member’s airspace and six were reported in Moldova, where one fell on the roof of a building but did not explode. This follows an incident last week when a Russian drone hit a Turkish LPG tanker moored on the Ukrainian side of the river. “We kind of consider ourselves part of the war,” Tudor Cernega, the mayor of Ceatalchioi village, told RFE/RL’s Romanian Service. “If the ship had exploded, the whole village would have vanished.”
Fresh opinion research reveals President Trump’s supporters increasingly see Putin and Russia as a threat to the United States. Eight-six percent of conservative voters believe Russia is a threat and 76% support Ukraine’s proposal to buy $90 billion of U.S. weapons, according to polling conducted by Target Point for the Vandenberg Coalition. Since the summer, new polling has revealed a 22-point swing in support of military aid to Ukraine from religious conservatives. A majority of Republican voters (64%) see Putin as the primary obstacle to a cease-fire. More than three-quarters of Republican primary voters are concerned that Russia or China may attack the U.S. with drones.
Caracas said Washington’s decision to designate the Cartel de los Soles — an amorphous group the US says is helmed by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro — as a terrorist organization is “ridiculous,” exacerbating tensions between the countries. The designation marks an escalation in Washington’s campaign against Caracas by making it a crime to provide money or services to the heads of the Venezuelan state. The move comes as the US increases its military presence in the Southern Caribbean, including a visit yesterday by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to the region. While the White House maintains the deployment is part of anti drug-smuggling operations, airlines have recently cancelled flights to Venezuela over fears of a potential US strike - Semafor
An Italian man has been accused of disguising himself as his dead mother— complete with wig, lipstick and jewellery — to fraudulently claim her pension, according to domestic media reports. The unemployed former nurse, who has not been identified, allegedly claimed thousands of euros in pension payments following the death of his mother in 2022, Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported. Italian press dubbed it the Mrs Doubtfire Scandal, after the 1993 film starring the late Robin Williams, in which a father poses as a nanny to spend time with his children after losing custody in a divorce. The scam was reportedly uncovered when the 56-year-old tried to renew his mother’s ID card at the registry office in the town of Borgo Virgilio in northern Italy - Euronews
Two very lucky birds won the White House lottery this year -- a presidential pardon and a lifetime free from the Thanksgiving dinner table. Waddle and Gobble, who had their names chosen by the public online, were pardoned by President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump Tuesday in the annual tradition that spares two Thanksgiving turkeys from becoming the centerpiece of a holiday meal. “See how happy he is,” Trump remarked of Gobble at the ceremony. Waddle was not present at the formal pardoning ceremony. “Waddle, by the way is missing in action, but that’s OK, we can pretend Waddle is here,” Trump said. The two birds stayed at the luxurious Willard InterContinental hotel in D.C. ahead of their Rose Garden ceremony, according to the hotel. The two turkeys are provided to the White House by the National Turkey Federation, who will take Gobble and Waddle back to North Carolina, where they will live under the care of the Prestage Department of Poultry Science at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, per the school. Trump also took the opportunity to tout his administration’s accomplishments, including the passage of his “one, big beautiful bill,” working to increase safety in cities across the country, and mitigating international conflicts. He also lambasted some of his political opponents, including former President Joe Biden, who he said had given invalid pardons to last year’s turkeys based off his previous claims that Biden used an autopen to sign pardons. “The turkeys known as Peach and Blossom last year have been located, and they were on their way to be processed, in other words to be killed, but I stopped that journey and I am officially pardoning them,” Trump said.
“The turkeys known as Peach and Blossom last year have been located, and they were on their way to be processed, in other words to be killed, but I stopped that journey and I am officially pardoning them” - Donald Trump
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to World Briefing to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.