South Asia
28,000 Afghans have applied for temporary refuge in the United States (US) since the hasty departure of American and NATO forces from the country back in August. However, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services has only approved 100 applications, saying that the rarely-used humanitarian parole programme has not been able to keep pace with the sudden surge in applications. [Al Jazeera]
Over 30 people have reportedly died from ongoing flash floods in southern India, with 18 others still missing. Analysts have attributed this to extreme weather changes brought in by climate change. [The Straits Times]
Central Asia and the Caucasus
The European Union (EU) has stated that Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan will meet with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Brussels next month to discuss border clashes and advance peace talks. An EU spokesperson said that the leaders will seek “ways of overcoming tensions for a prosperous and stable South Caucasus.” [RFE/RL]
Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili on Saturday called on the United States to pressure his country’s government to respect democracy, which he says “is in grave danger.” On the same day, Saakashvili, who was detained for alleged fraud and corruption charges last month, ended his 50-day hunger strike. [RFE/RL]
East and Southeast Asia
Chinese President Xi Jinping announced the establishment of the China-ASEAN comprehensive strategic partnership. Xi said that the new partnership “will inject fresh impetus to regional and world peace, stability, prosperity and development.” [Global Times]
The International Criminal Court on Saturday suspended a probe into human rights abuses committed during Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs. Manila had filed a deferral request on November 10, stating that the country would carry out its own investigations into the killings. [CNN]
Europe
The United Kingdom announced that it will host a face-to-face meeting of foreign ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) foreign ministers from December 10 to 12 in Liverpool. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has been invited to attend for the first time. Discussions will centre around advancing economic post-pandemic recovery and enhancing global health and human rights. [Reuters]
Tensions at the Poland-Belarus border eased after Belarus moved migrants camping at the border in freezing temperatures to a nearby warehouse for shelter. However, on Saturday, Poland’s defence minister claimed that migrants are still trying to cross the border in smaller groups in different places. He also said that he would hold a series of talks with European Union officials about the matter. [Euronews]
Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed on Sunday that he had received a third jab of the Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine amid a resurgent wave of the virus in the country. Only 36.7% of Russia’s population is vaccinated, despite the country manufacturing several vaccines of its own. Officially, Russia has recorded 9.3 million cases of COVID-19 and just over 264,000 deaths, making it the worst-hit country in Europe. [The Moscow Times]
Latin America and the Caribbean
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said that his government will not resume negotiations with the political opposition in the country until the United States releases businessman Alex Saab, a close ally of the government who was extradited to the US on money-laundering charges back in October. [The Hill]
On Sunday, right-wing candidate and lawmaker José Antonio Kast and leftist former student protest leader Gabriel Boric emerged as the two top candidates in Chile’s presidential election. However, as they both only respectively secured 28% and 25% of votes, they will now contest a run-off election on December 19. They seek to replace Sebastián Piñera, who has served his second term in office since 2018 after his first term between 2010 and 2014. [Associated Press]
Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
Iraqi Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, whose coalition won last month’s parliamentary election, said on Friday that he was dissolving the Promised Day Brigade, an armed faction loyal to him, and shutting down its headquarters. Since his victory, Sadr has been urging paramilitary groups to disband and hand in their weapons. [Reuters]
Iran announced on Saturday that it has fully vaccinated 44 million people, more than half of its population, against COVID-19. Iran, the worst-hit country by the pandemic in the Middle East, has recorded at least 128,000 deaths since the start of the pandemic. [Associated Press]
North America
On Sunday, American religious group Christian Aid Ministries confirmed that two of their 17 missionaries who were captured in Haiti last month have been released. Haiti’s 400 Mawozo gang captured 16 Americans and one Canadian last month and demanded $1 million per hostage as ransom. [The Hill]
On Saturday, United States Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin met Bahrain Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa in Manama. Austin thanked the Crown Prince for being an important regional ally and intermediary on security issues. Iran is likely to be Washington’s next area of focus in the region, “Iran’s actions in recent months have not been encouraging—especially because of the expansion of their nuclear program,” Austin said in a statement. “Let’s be clear: America’s commitment to security in the Middle East is strong and sure,” he added. [Voice of America]
Oceania
New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta left for the United States on Sunday after concluding her trip to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar. Her visit to the UAE included meeting with the Emirati leaders and hosting an event at the Dubai Expo 2020. She also discussed opportunities to promote cooperation in food security and trade with Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan. In Qatar, Mahuta thanked Qatari officials for extending aid to New Zealand citizens and visa holders while they were leaving Afghanistan. [Government of New Zealand]
Australia is set to welcome back fully vaccinated international students and eligible visa holders from Japan and South Korea from next week. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said, “The return of skilled workers and students to Australia is a major milestone in our pathway back, it's a major milestone about what Australians have been able to achieve and enable us to do.” [ABC News]
Sub-Saharan Africa
Five Chinese employees at a gold mine in South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo were kidnapped by “armed bandits” on Saturday night, according to military sources. It is not known where they were taken. One policeman was killed during the attack. The Chinese company had only begun work around five months ago and has previously received pushback from locals. Beijing has advised all Chinese nationals to leave the province immediately. [Africa News]
Ugandan police have arrested 21 suspected linked to last Tuesday’s twin blasts in capital city Kampala that killed at least two police officers and four civilians, and injured dozens. The suspects reportedly belong to the Allied Democratic Forces, an Islamist terror group that operates in both Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. [Nile Post News]