U.S.
Trump Announces Tariffs, Again
President Donald Trump announced new tariffs of 10% on European countries, including Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, the U.K., the Netherlands, France, and Germany, over their objections to Mr. Trump’s repeated remarks about either buying Greenland or taking it by force. The tariffs, set to begin on February 1st before increasing to 25% on June 1st if a deal on Greenland is not reached before then, appear to come on top of an existing 15% tariff on EU countries, possibly signalling an end to the trade deal struck by Mr. Trump last year. According to the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, that deal had placed “a clear ceiling” of 15% on the U.S. ‘s tariff rate. European leaders expressed outrage over Mr. Trump’s statements and reiterated that Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark, was not for sale.
Asia
Snap Elections in Japan
The prime minister of Japan, Takaichi Sanae, announced on January 19 that she would be dissolving the House of Representatives. The new elections, which will take place on February 8th, represent a gamble by Ms. Takaichi: her party, the Liberal Democratic Party (L.D.P.), does not have a majority in either house of the Diet, or the Japanese Parliament. As such, she runs the risk of potentially losing valuable seats that the L.D.P. cannot afford to lose; on the other hand, if the L.D.P. obtained a majority, Ms. Takaichi would be empowered to carry out her expensive economic agenda.
Middle East
Widespread Protests in Iran
Nationwide protests in Iran came to an end this month after a severe crackdown by Iranian security forces, with as many as 3,000 protesters potentially killed according to the New York Times. The newspaper admits, however, that due to the communications blackout imposed by the Iranian government, it is nearly impossible to verify if this is true. The demonstrations began when people took to the streets to protest about the many economic problems facing Iran, in part due to Western sanctions and a 12-day conflict with Israel last year that damaged Iranian infrastructure. President Trump had threatened to intervene in Iran if they did not stop killing protesters, but as of yet there are no known instances of American military action in the area.
South America
Venezuela
On January 3rd, President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela and his wife were captured by the U.S. in a highly successful raid on the Venezuelan capital of Caracas. Over 40 people died in the attack. None of those killed were American, but several soldiers were injured when a helicopter came under fire. Mr. Maduro has since been brought to New York and is being prosecuted for charges related to narco-terrorism and drug-trafficking. He denies these charges. Mr. Trump has claimed that the U.S. would take control of Venezuela’s oil exports and urged American oil executives to invest in the country. However, the CEO of Exxon Mobil called Venezuela “uninvestable” after seeming to cite its past nationalization of American oil assets, as Hugo Chávez did in 1976.
