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Todayโs newsletter supported by: |
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Hi there Intriguer.ย Regular in-flight movies began on this date in 1961.ย
Andโฆ speaking of things we couldnโt do without, a big shout-out to Alex, Rahul, โGDโ, and Bryan, whoโve been sharing Intrigue everywhere! To say thanks, some sweet merch is headed their way. Folks only need to refer two people (with your unique link below) to unlock some intriguing perks.
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Todayโs briefing is a 4 min read:
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๐ฎ๐ฑย Israelโs prime minister gets a POTUS invite.
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๐จ๐ณย Chinaโs foreign minister has vanished.
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โ Plus: A Catalan exclave, how the papers are covering Chinaโs latest economic data, and why Colombians are googling condors.
โฑ๏ธ Around the world in sixty seconds
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๐ฏ๐ตย Japan: Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is in Qatar for LNG supply talks, after brief stops in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Kishidaโs Gulf tour is focussed on securing Japanโs energy supplies.
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๐ช๐บย EU: An EU-Latin America summit has returned after an eight-year pause. Delegates are hoping itโll help finalise EU trade deals with Mexico, Chile and the Mercosur bloc.
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๐ฆ๐บย Australia: The state of Victoria has pulled out of hosting the 2026 Commonwealth Games, saying itโs not prepared to spend ~$4.5B to host the sporting event. The games, attended by over 70 countries every four years, have only ever been cancelled during WWII.
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๐บ๐ธย US: A US soldier has been detained after crossing into North Korea during a tour of the border village of Panmunjom. The man reportedly โmade a runโ over the border, and itโs unclear if heโs defected to North Korea or hopes to return.
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๐น๐ทย Turkey: Taxes on petrol tripled over the weekend as Turkey looks to replenish state funds after a spike in pre-election government spending. Part of the money raised will be used to fund the reconstruction of areas impacted by this yearโs earthquake.
๐ฎ๐ฑ Israel | Geopolitics
Bibi finally gets his Biden invite
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US President Joe Biden has invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (aka Bibi) to meet in the US sometime before the end of the year.
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The invite comes amid a renewed push from Netanyahuโs government to curb the influence of Israelโs judiciary, after a public backlash prompted him to suspend those reform efforts back in March.
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Opponents to the judicial overhaul havenโt given up. On Tuesday (yesterday), they organised another โday of disruptionโ in which protestors:
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๐ง Stopped traffic on major highways
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โ Blocked entrances at the Israeli military HQ in Tel Aviv, and
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๐ Briefly gate-crashed the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.
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And Biden shares their concerns, calling on Netanyahu to โwalk awayโ from the plan earlier this year, before this month describing Bibiโs cabinet as having some of โthe most extremeโ members in decades.
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His decision to then initially extend an invite only to Israelโs president (a ceremonial role) was largely seen as a snub to Bibi.
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Intrigue’s take: So, why the 180? It seems thereโs no change in US policy towards Bibiโs reforms, nor in US concerns around members of Bibiโs coalition.
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Rather, the US has probably assessed it needs to stabilise relations with its key Middle East ally, both to present a united front on Iran, and to curb the influence of China (which extended an invite to Bibi last month).
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Also worth noting:
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Washington has declined to say where the meeting will take place, with some speculating itโll happen on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly rather than at the White House.
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Israelโs President Isaac Herzog visited the White House yesterday (Tuesday) and will address a joint session of the US Congress later today (Wednesday).
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Netanyahu told Biden during a call on Monday (17 July) that the first part of Israelโs judicial overhaul will pass next week.
๐ฐ How newspapers coveredโฆ
China missing its second quarter GDP forecasts
New York, US |
โChinaโs economy misses growth forecasts, raising the odds of more support for its tepid recoveryโ |
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โChinaโs Q2 GDP grows 6.3% despite challenges; growth rate hard-won despite falling short of some projectionsโ |
Singapore |
โChina Q2 growth disappoints, youth unemployment hits record 21.3%โ |
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Todayโs newsletter is supported by: The Daily Upside
Find out why top executives trust This Business Newsletter
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With a dedication to clarity over clickbait, The Daily Upside gives you only the most essential stories, helping you stay informed in under 5 minutes. Founded by a team of wall street insiders, bankers, and scholars, The Daily Upside delivers industry-level analysis with absolutely zero BS.
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Join 1 Million subscribers โ including the team at International Intrigue โ who trust The Daily Upside every day.
๐จ๐ณ China | Politics
Chinaโs Foreign Minister Qin Gang
Where is Chinaโs foreign minister?
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Chinaโs foreign minister, Qin Gang, hasnโt been seen in public in more than three weeks. His longest previous absence lasted just eight days (over the Lunar New Year).
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Qin, whoโs enjoyed a rapid rise through Chinaโs system, has now missed key diplomatic engagements. And Beijing is scrubbing any speculation online, while offering only vague โhealthโ-related answers when pressed.
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So two main theories are filling the void:
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๐ค A Hong Kong newspaper suggests heโs contracted Covid, and
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๐คซ There are rumours Qin was having an affair with a TV presenter (affairs are banned within Chinaโs ruling Communist Party).
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Intrigueโs take: Both of these theories are credible: China closely guards the health status of its top officials, and often cites extramarital affairs when charging cadres with corruption.
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But ultimately, only Beijing can put these rumours to rest. And the longer it waits, the more likely Qinโs absence is about something beyond his health.
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Also worth noting:
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Both US Secretary of State Blinken and US Treasury Secretary Yellen recently visited China (Qin was absent for both visits).
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A former state media chief in China has implicitly criticised Beijingโs silence on Qin (in Mandarin, but most web browsers can translate it).
โ Extra Intrigue
Hereโs what people around the world were googling on Tuesday 18 July:
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๐บ๐ฆ Ukrainians were searching for โะััะผัะบะธะน ะผะพััโ (Crimean bridge) after an attack on the Kerch bridge shut down the occupied peninsulaโs key link with Russia.
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Folks in ๐ง๐ชย Belgium looked up โPommelien Thijsโ to get the latest news on her performance at the Gentse Feesten music festival.
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๐จ๐ด Colombians were wowed by incredible footage of a condor on top of a snowy perch.
๐ณ๏ธ Poll time!
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On the eve of the FIFA Womenโs World Cup, who do you think is the greatest female athlete of all time? |
๐บ๏ธ Map of the day
Credits: Amusing Planet.
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How did part of Spain get stuck in France?
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The good people of Llรญvia are separated from their compatriots in Catalonia, Spain, by 1.6km of French territory. This arrangement dates back to the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659, which ended the Franco-Spanish War and saw Spain cede its โvillagesโ north of the Pyrenees. But since Llรญvia was considered a โtownโ, Spain got to keep it on a technicality. Thatโs some quality lawyering right there.
Yesterdayโs poll: Despite his Wimbledon loss, is Novak Djokovic the greatest male athlete ever? If not, who is?
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๐จโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธ ๐พ Novak Djokovic (6%)
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๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฉย ๐ Michael Jordan (30%)
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๐จ๐จ๐จ๐จโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธ โฝ Lionel Messi (20%)
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๐จโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธ โณ Tiger Woods (6%)
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๐จโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธ ๐ Wayne Gretzky (8%)
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๐จโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธ ๐โโ๏ธ Usain Bolt (9%)
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โฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธ โธ๏ธ Yuzuru Hanyu (3%)
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๐จ๐จ๐จโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธโฌ๏ธ โ๏ธ Someone else (write in!) (19%)
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Your two cents:
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โธ๏ธ H: โHeโs beauty, heโs grace, heโll triple-axle your face – itโs Yuzuru Hanyu.โ
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โ๏ธ TW: โAs great as those other men are, my vote will forever go to Terry Fox. Running 5,373 km — or 128 marathons — in 143 days? Truly remarkable.โ
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Honourable mentions: Pelรฉ โฝ, Roger Federer ๐พ, James Anderson ๐, Rafael Nadal ๐พ, Michael Phelps ๐โโ๏ธ, and Eliud Kipchoge ๐โโ๏ธ.