South Asia
Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby expressed “concern” over the delivery of the Russian S-400 air missile defence system to India. Kirby’s comments could hint at the possibility of sanctions against India. [Times of India]
Alam Gul Haqqani, the director of the passport department in Kabul, reported that his office’s operations have been suspended after a surge in applications crashed the biometrics system. He said the department receives 15,000 to 20,000 applicants every day, with thousands of Afghans attempting to cross borders and escape the humanitarian crisis. [The Straits Times]
Central Asia and the Caucasus
Two opposition parties in Armenia’s parliament boycotted a regular session of the legislature on Tuesday following the government’s refusal to discuss the ongoing violent skirmishes with Azerbaijan in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. Baku and Yerevan have accused each other of shooting at their respective troops and violating last year’s ceasefire. [RFE/RL]
Georgia has once again extended former President Mikheil Saakashvili’s detention by barring him from attending his trial on corruption and fraud charges. Georgia’s Special Penitentiary Service said on Monday that Saakashvili cannot be present in the courtroom due to his poor state of health. [RFE/RL]
East and Southeast Asia
Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs Hayashi Yoshimasa held a video teleconference meeting with Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne on Tuesday. The two agreed to increase security, defence, and economic cooperation, and to coordinate with “like-minded” countries, including India and the United States. [MOFA.JP]
Sara Duterte-Caprio, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s oldest daughter, has agreed to become the running mate of Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., the son of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr., in next year’s presidential election. Experts say that Marcos has emerged as the election’s frontrunner due to Duterte-Caprio’s decision not to run against him. [CNN]
Europe
The British Office for National Statistics reported an increase in employment rate between July and September, bringing much-needed relief following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak called this a result of the “extraordinary success of the furlough scheme.” [Politico]
On Tuesday, the European Court of Justice criticised the Hungarian government for its 2018 ‘Stop Soros’ law that threatens people who help asylum seekers with jail time, calling it incompatible with European Union (EU) law. The Court said, “Criminalising such activities impinges on the exercise of the rights safeguarded by the EU legislature in respect of the assistance of applicants for international protection.” [DW]
Latin America and the Caribbean
The Chilean Senate has rejected a motion to impeach President Sebastián Piñera over allegations of corruption that were uncovered in the Panama Papers. 24 Senators voted in favour, 18 against, and one abstained in the 43-member Senate; the motion needed at least two-thirds approval to pass and was moved to the Senate after it was approved in the Lower House last Tuesday. The opposition alleged that the president violated the constitution by approving the sale of a “family mining project” through a tax haven. [Associated Press]
Former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who was cleared of all corruption charges earlier this year and thus allowed to run in next year’s election, has said that he is confident of defeating incumbent leader Jair Bolsonaro, whom he described as a “bad copy of Trump.” [Telesur]
Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
Warlord and leader of the Libyan National Army Khalifa Haftar announced on Tuesday that he will contest next month’s presidential election. Haftar vowed “to begin the path of reconciliation, peace and construction” in the war-torn country if he is elected. [Reuters]
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) stated on Tuesday that Ethiopia has detained at least 1,000 individuals under the state of emergency declared by the government earlier this month. The OHCHR noted that most of the detainees were ethnic Tigrayans, “arrested often on suspicion of being affiliated to […] the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).” [OHCHR]
North America
United States Deputy Secretary of State Wendy R. Sherman met with South Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong Kun in Washington on Tuesday. According to a statement released by the US Department of State, the pair “reaffirmed the US-ROK Alliance as the linchpin of peace, security, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific and beyond.” They also talked about the importance of the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula and other challenges such as the pandemic and climate change. [US Department of State]
Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly is scheduled to visit Washington for a two-day trip starting today following her trip to Mexico earlier this week. Aside from speaking with Canadian business leaders and Indigenous representatives, she will also join Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for the North American Leaders’ Summit on Thursday. [Global Affairs Canada]
Oceania
On Tuesday, New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta concluded her three-day visit to Indonesia and reaffirmed the country’s engagement in the Indo-Pacific. Mahuta held meetings with President Joko Widodo, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, and ASEAN Secretary-General Dato Lim Jock Hoi during her visit. [The Government of New Zealand]
On Wednesday, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison will unveil a list of rapidly developing technologies—including vaccines, autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence and quantum technologies—that could be blocked from being shared with Chinese firms and universities. Canberra hopes the move will restrict China’s dominance and investment across a range of critical sectors. [The Sydney Morning Herald]
Sub-Saharan Africa
South Africa declared four days of national mourning to honour former President Frederik Willem de Klerk, who died in Cape Town last week at the age of 85. De Klerk was South Africa’s last White president and was in office from September 1989 to May 1994. He is perhaps best known for releasing Nelson Mandela from prison in 1990, which paved the way for multi-party elections in 1994 that brought an end to the apartheid era. He also served as deputy president under Mandela. In his final message, he apologised “without qualification” for the “pain and indignity” caused by apartheid. [Africa News]
Two explosions in Kampala have killed at least two police officers and four civilians, and injured dozens. The suicide bombers attacked the City Square and Parliament Avenue in the Ugandan capital. [AllAfrica]