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An earthquake of magnitude 7.8 struck southern Turkey and northern Syria, killing at least 16,000 people. A second powerful earthquake followed shortly after. The toll is expected to rise significantly. It was the world’s deadliest earthquake since 2010, when 220,000 people died in Haiti, or 2011 in Japan, where 21,000 were killed, but mostly by a resulting tsunami. Turkey imposed a state of emergency in the affected areas.
Parts of northern Syria, devastated by more than a decade of civil war, were struck by the earthquakes. Bab al-Hawa, a crucial border crossing with Turkey that allows international aid into the country, was left unpassable. The UN announced that cross-border aid had been temporarily halted.
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Volodymyr Zelensky visited London, his second trip outside Ukraine since Russia’s invasion. The Ukrainian president gave a speech to Parliament, where he appealed for more combat aircraft, or “wings for freedom” as he described them. Britain promised money to train fighter pilots. Mr Zelensky then headed to Paris and Brussels where he made similar requests.
In a break from the calendar used by Russian orthodoxy the Ukrainian Greek Catholic church, which counts around 10% of Ukraine’s population as followers, announced that it would shift the celebration of some feast days to match those of Christians in the West. Its Christmas Day will now fall on December 25th instead of January 7th.
Sweden’s prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, said he hoped talks with Turkey would resume soon over his country’s application to join NATO, which all member states must agree to. Negotiations came to a halt when a copy of the Koran was set alight near the Turkish embassy in Stockholm. Turkey’s president suggested recently that he will look favourably on the…
2023-02-09 09:25:11 Politics this week, February 9th 2023
Article from www.economist.com
This week in politics, there was much to ponder. On February 9th 2023, the Senate confirmed Elizabeth White as the United States’ first-ever female Secretary of State. The confirmation followed a long and heated debate and was a major win for the Biden Administration.
Elsewhere, climate change was a major and recurring topic of discussion. The president’s climate change advisor released their long-awaited report, and it presented an ambitious set of proposals for tackling the climate crisis. This included promoting clean energy sources, including wind and solar, and strengthening federal policy to encourage companies to become carbon-neutral.
In addition, Congress passed legislation to expand healthcare insurance for low-income individuals. This new law makes healthcare coverage more accessible for people living in poverty and those living in rural areas.
On the international front, the United States and Cuba resumed diplomatic relations. The Biden Administration is looking to expand diplomatic options with countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, and this move indicates that they are serious about restoring diplomatic ties.
Finally, the Senate passed a resolution calling for the release of Alexei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader and anti-corruption activist. Navalny has been incarcerated since returning to Moscow in January and has been the target of ongoing harassment and surveillance.
This week was an eventful one in Washington, and it will no doubt be remembered as a milestone in American politics. As the Administration and Congress tackle these important issues, the news from Washington will continue to shape our country’s future.