In this week’s Monday Briefing we put the spotlight on the 29th UN Climate Change Conference and its consequences on the global stage. In other news, we look at Italy’s second attempt to send asylum seekers to facilities in Albania, which has been again blocked by judicial ruling. All this and much, much more in our latest issue. Have a read to start your week informed!
Spotlight: The Climate Stakes Have Never Been Higher Than at COP29
by Elisa Latora
This year the world’s annual CO2 emissions are on track to hit a record high, and the goal of keeping global warming close to 1.5 degrees Celsius is increasingly a hopeless dream. This is why the stakes have never been higher than at the 29th UN Climate Change Conference, currently being held in Baku, Azerbaijan.
If anything, the fossil fuel legacy of Baku, known as the world’s first oil town, is perfectly emblematic of the wider historical legacy of fossil fuels and their undying links to economies worldwide. The expectations for COP29 are high: this year negotiations are expected to focus on the climate finance provided by developed countries to support adaptation to climate change in developing ones. Since 2022, the value of this financial support has exceeded the target set at $100 billion. Nonetheless, developing nations have said that they need $1.3 trillion at the negotiations table, and climate experts have argued for the need of a fund of $1 trillion.
However, COP29 seems to have been overshadowed by other events on the global stage like the US presidential elections. While the world is bracing for Trump to withdraw the US from the Paris Climate Agreement for the second time, many world leaders are absent from this year’s summit. These include the Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Narendra Modi and all G7 leaders except for Britain’s and Italy’s. It is uncertain what kind of agreements could be struck without a direct personal mandate from many key world leader. Moreover, the COP29 is creating an environment of growing tensions: The Guardian reports that as many as 1,773 coal, oil, and gas lobbyists have been granted access to the summit and climate negotiations, whereas reports are increasingly highlighting Azerbaijan’s arrests of climate activists in the recent months.
Around the World
by Vatsal Aggarwal and Giulio Savare
Haiti swears in new PM as gunfire at airport hits flight from US.
Haiti swore in a new prime minister, Alix Didier Fils-Aime, hours after gunfire hit a Spirit Airlines flight approaching Port-au-Prince. Fils-Aime, a businessman with limited political experience, vowed to restore security in the country plagued by gang violence and political instability following the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise. The airport in Port-au-Prince closed indefinitely after the incident, with Spirit and American Airlines suspending flights. Gang violence has displaced over 700,000 people, deepening Haiti’s humanitarian crisis. Fils-Aime replaces Garry Conille, ousted by Haiti’s Presidential Transition Council amid criticism of his lack of progress and deference to international interests.
US military strikes ‘Iranian-backed’ fighters in Syria for a second day
The United States military conducted airstrikes in Syria targeting Iranian-aligned groups following a rocket attack on a US base in Hasakah province. CENTCOM, overseeing US forces in the Middle East, confirmed strikes on weapons storage and logistics hubs but provided no details about the targets. The rockets caused no damage or injuries. CENTCOM also conducted strikes earlier in the week, reportedly killing four Syrian fighters and wounding ten others in Deir Az Zor. Approximately 900 US troops remain in Syria to counter ISIL and limit Iran’s influence. Despite a 2018 withdrawal order, the US maintains forces in the region.
Tracking Trump’s Cabinet and Staff Nominations.
President-elect Donald Trump is assembling the Cabinet for his second term. While the president has complete discretion to nominate some officials, such as the White House chief of staff, the heads of the executive departments must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Some appointments, like Matt Gaetz as Attorney general, appear to be controversial and may face obstacles during confirmation.
European News
Spotlight: Italian Migration policy halted after judicial ruling.
Italian magistrates have once more stopped Giorgia Meloni’s idea when it comes to the Albanian protocol on immigration. The plan, praised by many as an example of immigration policy but still highly criticized in Italy for its legality, was to move hundreds of immigrants to Albania for a limited period of time, where they would be hosted in newly built installations. Magistrates’ intervention in the matter has stopped the transfer already twice, and now the opposition is accusing the government of wasting taxpayers’ money.
The most unusual part of this news is the reaction of the tech tycoon Elon Musk, who soon will be an active part of the US government. He posted on his social media X, accusing Italy of being ruled by an unelected caste, referring to Italian judges. This is not the first time the South African billionaire has expressed sympathies for the Italian PM Meloni and surely it won’t be the last. Italian President Sergio Mattarella has issued an official communication answering to Musk, in which he underlines Italian sovereignty on the matter.
Archbishop of Canterbury resigns due to covering sexual abuser.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has officially resigned after widespread calls. The highest authority in the Anglican Church besides the King was accused of covering a known sexual abuser, John Smyth, for several years. The man was active in the 70s and 80s in England, later moving to Zimbabwe, where he continued its malicious activities up until 1992, when he fled to country because he was accused of killing a teenage boy. In total he was responsible for at least 115 child abuses. Reports suggests that the Church of England was very aware of such crimes, and never reported them to the police. Welby was informed of the dossier when he became Archbishop in 2013.
EU Commission fines Meta for abusive market practices.
The European Commission has fined META, the American social media company that runs Facebook and Instagram, for infringing anti-trust regulations in the advertisement market. The EU regulator argues that Facebook Marketplace, the internal service provided to users who want to advertise, has an unmatched advantage compared to any another advertiser on META websites, as users are exposed to it whether they want or not. Now the American company has 60 days to comply with this sanction, by giving the ability to choose to its users. META spokesperson has announced that they will contest the decision.
Having lived both in Italy and the UK, I enjoy exploring how multiculturalism affects our personal identities. I use language, writing and journalism as tools to decipher the world around me. And, I will of course never turn down a lively convo about current news. With a degree in Economic and Social sciences, I’m now pursuing a master’s in Politics and Policy Analysis.
I have spent most of my life in India before recently moving to Milan, where I am pursuing an MSc in Finance at Bocconi. I am interested in politics, art and culture, cinema, and travelling. Through my writing, I aspire to document important voices and present opinions. In my free time, I try to keep up with my movies-to-watch list, sample as many restaurants as I can, and find cats to pet.
Always trying to extend my knowledge about the mysterious forces that shape our reality, sometimes with some weird model, sometimes by reading the news. In this chapter of my life I am pursuing a Bachelor's degree in Economic and Social Sciences at Bocconi.
Every week, your TiL Monday Briefing 🗞: you better read it with a cup of coffee! ☕️
Head of the Monday Briefing column: Pietro Ferrari. Current writing staff: Vatsal Aggarwal, Cristiana Murè. Cartoons by Polina Mednikova. The Monday Briefing column was established in its current form in 2021 by Bojan Zeric.
