The most important foreign affairs events of the week

March 27, 2023

“Taiwan’s former president, Ma Ying-jeou, landed in China on Monday in the first visit to the country by any sitting or former Taiwanese leader since China’s civil war ended in 1949. The timing of Mr. Ma’s trip is noteworthy because he departed days before Taiwan’s current leader, President Tsai Ing-wen, visited the United States, a trip that has been met with objections by China. The contrasting destinations highlight an internal issue regarding the two major parties: the Democratic Progressive Party, which has strengthened U.S.-Taiwan ties during its current eight years in office; and the Chinese Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang, which bills itself as better able to deal with Beijing.”

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The adjective noteworthy means “deserving notice or attention; notable; remarkable.”

The transitive verb bill means “to declare or describe officially; proclaim.” Close synonyms are “declare”, “proclaim”, “publicize”, and “announce”.

March 28, 2023

“Belarus’ Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the country would be willing to host Russian tactical nuclear weapons on its territory to strengthen its defense capabilities in response to what it sees as security threats from Western nations amid the war in Ukraine. Vladimir Putin had previously stated the same, in an attempt to put pressure on Ukraine’s allies to back down from their support of Kyiv. Western officials condemned Mr. Putin’s remarks were dangerous and irresponsible, especially after his statement asserting that 10 Belarusian warplanes had been retrofitted to carry Russian nuclear weapons and that a storage facility for the warheads would be ready by July 1. Since February 2022, Belarus has moved further into Russia’s orbit, with the Kremlin taking steps to increase aid to its neighbor in a bid to more closely integrate the two countries, and perhaps even bring them to the brink of what analysts have described as a full-blown merger.”

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The transitive verb retrofit means “to outfit (a device, vehicle, building, or system) with newly developed or previously unavailable parts or equipment.”

The expression the brink of (something) means “a situation when you are almost in a new situation, usually a bad one.”

March 29, 2023

“On Wednesday, Vanuatu rallied countries to ask the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to weigh in on a high-stakes question: Can countries be sued under international law for failing to slow down climate change? The measure passed by consensus, meaning none of the 193 member states requested a vote, which reflects a widespread frustration over the fact that the greenhouse gas emissions warming the planet and wreaking havoc on the poorest nations are not being reduced quickly enough. In essence, with this resolution, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) is asking the ICJ to issue an opinion on whether governments have ‘legal obligations’ to protect people from climate hazards and, more crucially, whether failure to meet those obligations could bring ‘legal consequences.’ Although the court’s opinion would not be binding, it has the potential to turn the voluntary pledges that every country has made under the Paris Agreement into legal obligations under a range of existing international statutes.”

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The expression to weigh in means “to balance in the mind in order to make a choice; ponder or evaluate.”

The noun havoc means “widespread destruction; devastation; disorder or chaos.”

March 30, 2023

“Jair Bolsonaro, the former right-wing president of Brazil, returned home on Thursday morning after a three-month self-imposed exile in the United States following his defeat last year in an election that tested the stability of one of the world’s biggest democracies. He returns to a series of investigations and could face arrest if charged over his role in spreading baseless claims that Brazil’s election system was vulnerable to fraud. In January, Brazil’s Supreme Court said it would investigate Mr. Bolsonaro for inspiring the far-right mob that invaded and ransacked the country’s Congress, Supreme Court and presidential offices on Jan. 8, underscoring that the former leader could soon face legal consequences for an extremist movement he helped build.”

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The noun mob means “a large and often disorderly crowd; often derogatory to a group or class of people, animals, or things.”

The transitive verb ransacked means "to go through (a place) stealing valuables and causing disarray; pillage."

The transitive verb underscore means “to underline; to put emphasis on; stress; To cause to appear important or deserving of attention.”

March 31, 2023

“On Thursday, Finland won the final approval to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) after decades of nonalignment, a major shift in the balance of power between the West and Russia that was set off by the invasion of Ukraine. The Turkish Parliament cast the last vote needed for Finland’s entry into NATO, meaning that the alliance’s border with Russia will double. It is a diplomatic and strategic defeat for Vladimir Putin, who made clear when Russia invaded Ukraine that he was intent on blocking NATO’s eastward expansion. Meanwhile, Sweden’s membership application is being blocked by Turkey and Hungary. The Hungarian leader, Prime Minister Viktor Orban, has warm relations with Mr. Putin and, like Turkey, continues to receive Russian gas and oil.”

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The phrasal verb set off means “to give rise to; cause to occur; to direct attention to by contrast; accentuate.”

The adverb eastward means “toward, to, or in the east.”