Elections, more elections, and a weird American thing called a “caucus.” This week was full of them. Did you keep up with the latest votes—and news beyond the ballot box?
1. Who won Taiwan’s presidential election on Saturday?
The pro-independence Lai will enter office amid heightened tensions with China, which preferred the Kuomintang’s candidate, FP’s James Palmer writes in China Brief.
2. In further weekend voting, who won the presidency in Comoros?
Opposition leaders have accused Assoumani, who won a fourth term leading the island nation, of facilitating “fraud” and “ballot box stuffing,” FP’s Nosmot Gbadamosi writes in Africa Brief.
3. Former U.S. President Donald Trump won the Republican caucuses in Iowa on Monday by a significant margin. Which candidate came in second place?
In a recent interview, Trump declined to say whether he would order the U.S. military to defend Taiwan if it were attacked by China. That position will worry Lai, Taiwan’s next president, Timothy S. Rich writes.
4. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Tuesday said Pyongyang would no longer pursue reconciliation with South Korea. What reason did he give for the policy change?
Kim’s escalatory nuclear regime has gotten a recent boost from Russia, Robert A. Manning and Mathew Burrows note in their assessment of the world’s biggest potential conflicts for 2024.
5. A coalition of 23 aid agencies warned on Tuesday that escalating military operations in which country are compromising their ability to deliver critical services there?
The groups said more than 21 million people—over two-thirds of Yemen’s population—are in desperate need of food, water, and medical care, FP’s Alexandra Sharp reports.
6. How many people did Russia’s Tuesday missile strike on Kharkiv, Ukraine, injure?
Despite Russia’s continued bombardment of Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure, Kyiv still has a path to victory—in the air and on the sea, Rose Gottemoeller and Michael Ryan write.
7. Which two Latin American countries on Thursday requested that the International Criminal Court open an investigation into “the situation in the state of Palestine”?
The request from Santiago and Mexico City comes on the heels of South Africa’s petition to the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of committing genocide, which numerous countries across the global south have endorsed, FP’s Catherine Osborn writes in Latin America Brief.
8. Farmers protested in front of Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate on Monday. On Friday, which group of workers continued the protest in the same location?
Farmers say they are upset about the government’s plan to repeal agricultural diesel fuel subsidies. But Paul Hockenos argues it’s much ado about nothing.
9. A Quebec man pleaded guilty this week to starting how many forest fires in Canada?
Brian Paré, 38, had accused the government on social media of igniting the fires as part of a conspiracy to convince people of climate change, the Canadian Press reports.
10. Arnold Schwarzenegger was stopped for hours by customs at Munich Airport this week after entering Germany with which item?
The watch was to be auctioned at a charity event—meaning it needed to be declared, as is required for goods valued at over 430 euros ($467) that stay in the European Union. The former California governor’s watch, made by Swiss manufacturer Audemars Piguet, was valued at about 20,000 euros ($21,739), The Associated Press reports.
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