Talks on Gaza’s Future

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Top of the Agenda

Several Muslim-majority countries held talks on the future of Gaza in Istanbul yesterday, while the United States reportedly circulated a draft UN resolution for an international force in the territory. Countries that met in Istanbul included Indonesia, Jordan, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE); some are considering contributing troops for the international force. The draft resolution would give the United States and partner countries a mandate to govern Gaza and provide security through 2027, Axios reported yesterday.  

The latest from Istanbul. Yesterday’s meeting discussed how to ensure “legitimacy” for the future international mission in Gaza, Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said. Speaking to reporters afterward, he accused Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement and called for Israel to allow sufficient aid into Gaza. Israel says it is allowing hundreds of trucks of aid daily into the territory, but aid workers warn the enclave’s needs are still not being met. Despite Turkey’s role facilitating the peace talks, Israel has said it opposes direct Turkish participation in an international force.

The reported UN resolution. An unnamed U.S. official told Axios that the draft resolution will be subject to negotiations over the coming days, but that Washington hopes the first troops will be deployed by January. According to the draft, the international force would secure Gaza’s borders with Israel and Egypt, protect civilians and humanitarian corridors, train a new Palestinian police force, and decommission weapons from nonstate armed groups such as Hamas. An international “Board of Peace” would run a transitional government until the Palestinian Authority has completed reforms and is ready to govern Gaza. Aid would be delivered by groups including the United Nations, Red Cross, and Red Crescent.

“Without...additional security and governance structures, Gaza will be left with what now exists on the ground: namely, Hamas-run security forces and government ministries. But it doesn’t have to be this way. By constructing these alternatives, the governments that helped forge the ceasefire can also help disarm and disempower Hamas.”

—the Washington Institute for Near East Policy’s Matthew Levitt, Foreign Affairs

Across the Globe

Dick Cheney remembered. Cheney, former U.S. Secretary of Defense and two-time vice president, has died at age eighty-four. He served in four Republican administrations and played a particularly strong role in advocating for the invasion of Iraq in 2003, pressing allegations about weapons of mass destruction in the country and links to al-Qaeda. Cheney broadly helped engineer the George W. Bush administration’s post-9/11 war on terrorism, promoting the expansion of detention, interrogation, and surveillance policies. 

U.S. investments in rare earths. The Defense and Commerce Departments will together offer more than $700 million in financing to Vulcan Elements, a start-up that plans to produce rare earth magnets in the United States, and its partner ReElement Technologies Corp, a company that refines them. The deal promises to build out domestic supply of rare earth elements, benefiting the U.S. semiconductor and defense sectors, among others, a Commerce Department official said.

Aspirants to global trade pact. The Philippines and the UAE have applied to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, unnamed Japanese officials told multiple news outlets. Member states in the twelve-country pact eliminate almost all tariffs on each others’ products. Business leaders in the Philippines pushed for membership in response to U.S. tariffs, while the UAE is seeking to diversify its economy away from oil, Nikkei reported. 

U.S. chips in the UAE. The United States approved the export of Nvidia chips to the UAE for use in a Microsoft-backed artificial intelligence (AI) campus in Abu Dhabi. It is the first time the United States has greenlit Nvidia chip exports to the country and comes as China has also increased its investment in the Gulf’s AI sector. 

Mayors talk climate action. Three hundred mayors pledged to take further action to fight climate change at a Rio de Janeiro summit yesterday. Fifty United States cities sent officials, with Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego saying they would stake out a different position on climate than the Donald Trump administration. The summit is one of the side events associated with this year’s UN climate change conference, which begins next week in Belém, Brazil.

Famine declaration in Sudan. Famine is occurring in the besieged western Sudanese city of El Fasher, as well as the southern town of Kadugli, global hunger watchdog the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification said in a new report. It flagged twenty other areas at risk of famine. El Fasher was captured by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces last week after an eighteen-month campaign to take the city. 

Hegseth in Vietnam. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pledged $130 million to help Vietnam clean up leftover toxins from the Vietnam War. The commitment capped a two-day visit to the country which also saw Washington agree to support Vietnamese efforts to find missing soldiers using advanced DNA technology. The visit came as Vietnam has sought to diversify its defense ties, recently buying arms from Russia and exploring cooperation with Finland, Israel, and Turkey.

Americas summit postponed. The Summit of the Americas, originally slated for next month, will be delayed until next year due to the effects of Hurricane Melissa and “deep differences of opinion,” host Dominican Republic said. Latin American countries have been divided in recent weeks over how to respond to U.S. military strikes on small boats in the region.

What’s Next

• Today, European Union climate ministers meet in Brussels regarding the bloc’s 2040 climate target.

• Tomorrow, the U.S. Supreme Court hears a challenge to Trump administration tariffs. 

• Tomorrow, Britain’s Prince William presents the Earthshot Prize in Rio de Janeiro.