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President Volodymyr Zelensky is greeted by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as he arrives Britain.
What We’re Watching: Zelensky and the jets, Pakistan targets TTP militants
Zelensky to British lawmakers: “Give us wings”
President Volodymyr Zelensky embarked on a whirlwind tour on Wednesday, leaving Ukraine for just the second time since Russia’s war began almost a year ago. Making a surprise stop in the UK, Zelensky met with PM Rishi Sunak and King Charles III and charmed British lawmakers at an address in the House of Commons. While the build-up to the trip was shrouded in secrecy, Zelensky was upfront about why he was there, imploring parliament to send Ukraine fighter jets: “We have freedom. Give us wings to protect it,” he said. Some analysts have suggested that Zelensky is moving too fast and isn’t reading the room properly: After all, it was just a few weeks ago that western countries finally agreed to send him battle tanks, and that came only after months of handwringing and negotiations. Sunak, for his part, said he is still considering the request but confirmed that the UK will help train Ukrainian pilots to use NATO-standard jets. Zelensky then headed to Paris, where he made a similar plea to President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, followed by a stop in Brussels where he addressed the European Parliament. Crucially, the US has not committed to sending fighter jets, and given that Washington and Brussels have been in lockstep on supporting Ukraine, this might determine how the Europeans respond for now. Indeed, Poland, one of Ukraine's strongest allies, said it would only move on the request "within the entire formation of NATO."
Pakistan vs. its homegrown Taliban
On Wednesday, Pakistani security forces launched an early morning raid on a suspected terrorist hideout that killed 12 Pakistani Taliban insurgents. This is the latest deadly violence in an ongoing firefight between the Pakistani security services and the homegrown jihadis of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, a militant group allied with, but separate from, Afghanistan’s Taliban. Since the US-led NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021, the reestablishment of Taliban rule there has given new life to their allies inside Pakistan, who have demanded stricter enforcement of Islamic law and a reduced Pakistani military presence in the border region the group uses to trade and travel between the two countries. After 15 years of insurgency, the TTP and the government reached a ceasefire agreement. That deal broke down last November as militants resumed attacks on Pakistani soldiers and police. Then last week, Pakistani officials blamed the TTP for a suicide bombing at a mosque that killed more than 100 people, and this raid is the first major security response. The TTP denies involvement in the mosque bombing.
Biden's SOTU touts domestic wins but not foreign policy
Ian Bremmer shares his insights on global politics this week on World In :60.
What's your reaction to Biden's State of the Union address?
Well, I mean, a couple things. First of all, even longer than last year's. He has the longest State of the Unions of any president in memory. And he is getting old. He's 80 years old. The first half of the speech, he came across as very strong, pretty compelling. Second half of the speech, he was obviously getting tired. He was having difficulty with some of the sentences. That doesn't show incredibly well. More importantly, has a lot of domestic wins that he's focusing on. This feels like a kickoff to a campaign speech. I fully expect him to announce his run for the presidency formally in the next couple of months, and I think pretty much everyone on the Democrats side does as well.
Very little on foreign policy. The balloon was not mentioned directly. That's good. As I said, I don't think we're going to be talking about that in a few days time, only sort of indirectly. Much more competition with China. No new policy announced on Russia and Ukraine, but in part that's because they've got the money they need for now, and by the time you have to look for more in September, no one's going to remember this speech. And nothing really on the Middle East, nothing really on climate. This was really a campaign speech. This was a domestic speech, and that is absolutely the focus. More protectionism/industrial policy from the United States than you've seen in a long time. That's pretty much where I am. And yes, there was a lot of sort of divisiveness from the Republicans, a lot of booing, and Biden got into a back and forth, and I'm sure you'll see all that on cable news. You don't need it from me. Okay.
Will the earthquake lead to significant downturn in the Turkish economy?
Fortunately, not so much. A horrible loss of life. These are big urban areas that are being hit and they're being completely destroyed, but they're relatively underdeveloped, both in the case of Turkey and in Syria where there's a lot of loss of life, too. Very small part of the Turkish economy, won't have a lot of impact. Will help Erdogan bring foreign policy together. More support from the United States, from the Europeans, from the Greeks, his traditional adversary, and even from the Nordics. That's really important, not only in the run-up for his election in May, but also because after the elections you've got Finland and Sweden that want to join NATO, and he has been basically putting roadblocks there. I think it's pretty clear that they're going to have a smoother way in after Erdogan's election.
How did Zelensky's surprise visit to the United Kingdom go?
It went pretty well. Keep in mind his big relationship is with Boris Johnson, who still has a shot of coming back in the UK. He's much more credible than Liz Truss certainly is, who's kind of re-throwing her hat in the ring. So, it was good for him to see Rishi Sunak, good for him to build that relationship personally. Also, keep in mind that after the United States, the United Kingdom is by far the second most important military supporter of Ukraine's ability to defend and retake its territory.
In that regard, not at all a surprise that the first trip outside Ukraine was to the United States, the second trip to the UK. He is focused absolutely first and foremost on can he continue to defend his country. Remember, after those tanks were provided, he's like, "Thanks to the tanks, how about some planes now?" In the United States that plays as you can never satisfy this guy. In Ukraine, that is he understands that the West is going to lose interest over time and he is absolutely aware of that and desperate to ensure he has as much support as humanly possible to get his territory back now while he can.
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