Israele

(Associated Press) Netanyahu acknowledges ‘tragic mistake’ after Rafah strike kills dozens of Palestinians

• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged Monday that a “tragic mistake” had been made after an Israeli strike in the southern Gaza city of Rafah set fire to a tent camp housing displaced Palestinians and, according to local officials, killed at least 45 people.
• The strike only added to the surging international criticism Israel has faced over its war with Hamas, with even its closest allies expressing outrage at civilian deaths. Israel insists it adheres to international law even as it faces scrutiny in the world’s top courts, one of which last week demanded that it halt the offensive in Rafah.
• Netanyahu did not elaborate on the error. Israel’s military initially said it had carried out a precise airstrike on a Hamas compound, killing two senior militants. As details of the strike and fire emerged, the military said it had opened an investigation into the deaths of civilians.
• Sunday night’s attack, which appeared to be one of the war’s deadliest, helped push the overall Palestinian death toll in the war above 36,000, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between fighters and noncombatants in its tally.

Ucraina

(Associated Press) Ukraine’s Zelenskyy gets more air defense missiles from Spain to fight deadly Russian glide bombs

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday secured from Spain a pledge of additional air defense missiles to help fight the about 3,000 bombs that he says Russia launches every month at Ukraine in the third year of the war.
• However, Ukraine still urgently needs another seven U.S.-made Patriot air defense systems to stop Russia hitting the power grid and civilian areas, as well as military targets, with devastating glide bombs that wreak wide destruction, Zelenskyy said.
• Two Patriot systems are needed to protect the northeastern Kharkiv region, where the Kremlin’s forces launched a cross-border offensive on May 10 that left Ukrainian troops reeling, Zelenskyy said. The death toll from a glide bomb attack on a Kharkiv shopping mall Saturday rose to 18, regional Gov Oleh Syniehubov said Monday, with five people still missing.
• The Kharkiv push has further strained Ukraine’s already depleted army, which in recent months has been fighting Russia’s intense drive deeper into the partially occupied eastern Donetsk region. Zelenskyy said on Sunday that the Kremlin’s army is mustering at another point in Russia, farther north but close to the approximately 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line, aiming to stretch Ukraine’s depleted army thinner and crack its resistance in the area.
• Zelenskyy and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez signed a bilateral security agreement that allocates 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) of military aid to Ukraine in 2024, and 5 billion euros ($5.4 billion) by 2027. More Leopard tanks and artillery ammunition also feature in the package.

(New York Times) Russia Plans New Offensive in Ukraine’s Northeast, Zelensky Says

• President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said on Sunday that Moscow’s forces were massing for a new ground offensive on the northeast of his country, a day after a Russian missile strike on a hardware superstore in the city of Kharkiv killed at least 16 people and wounded dozens more, according to Ukrainian officials.
• “Russia is the only source of aggression and constantly tries to expand the war,” Mr. Zelensky said in a speech delivered in English inside the ruins of a publishing house in Kharkiv that was destroyed last week in a Russian strike.
• “Russia is preparing for offensive actions,” around 60 miles northwest of Kharkiv, he said, adding that Moscow was gathering “another group of troops near our border.” Mr. Zelensky gave no further details about the potential attack.
• One target for an assault, based on Mr. Zelensky’s comments, could be the Sumy region in northeastern Ukraine, which has seen frequent cross-border fire but no ground attacks since Russian forces attempted to seize its main city, also called Sumy, at the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. They were later forced to withdraw after fierce fighting. Ukraine’s military has previously warned of another Russian border assault in the northeast. A spokesman for Ukraine’s border guard service, Andriy Demchenko, told Ukrainian television on Sunday that it did not appear that the Russian forces gathered near the frontier were sufficient to mount a major attack.

Russia

(REUTERS) Kremlin condemns NATO boss's appeal for Ukraine to use Western arms in Russia

• The Kremlin scolded NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Monday for suggesting alliance members should let Ukraine strike deep into Russia with Western weapons, and said it was clear that NATO was in a direct confrontation with Russia.
• Stoltenberg told The Economist that NATO members supplying weapons to Ukraine should end their prohibition on using them to strike military targets in Russia.
• "NATO is increasing the degree of escalation," Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian daily Izvestia when asked about Stoltenberg's remarks.

(REUTERS) Russia to build Central Asia's first nuclear power plant in Uzbekistan

• Russia will build a small nuclear power plant in Uzbekistan, the first such project in post-Soviet Central Asia, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev said on Monday at a meeting with visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin.
• The nuclear deal, if implemented, will showcase Russia's ability to export not only energy, but also high-tech products to new Asian markets, at a time when the West is increasing pressure on it through sanctions.
• Putin said Russia would put $400 million into a joint investment fund of $500 million to finance projects in Uzbekistan.
• Mirziyoyev also said Tashkent was interested in buying more oil and gas from Russia, a reversal of decades-long practice where Moscow imported hydrocarbons from Central Asia.
• The Uzbek president described Putin's visit as "historic". "It heralds the beginning of a new age in the comprehensive strategic partnership and alliance relations between our countries," he said.

Europa

Europa - Israele:

(Associated Press) Relations between EU and Israel plummet as Spain, Ireland prepare to recognize a Palestinian state

• Relations between the European Union and Israel took a nosedive Monday, the eve of the diplomatic recognition of a Palestinian state by EU members Ireland and Spain, with Madrid insisting that sanctions should be considered against Israel for its continued deadly attacks in southern Gaza’s city of Rafah.
• Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz told Spain that its consulate in Jerusalem will not be allowed to help Palestinians.
• At the same time, the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell threw his weight to support the International Criminal Court, whose prosecutor is seeking an arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others, including leaders of the Hamas militant group.
• Spain, Ireland and Norway plan to make official their recognition of a Palestinian state on Tuesday. While dozens of countries have recognized a Palestinian state, none of the major Western powers has done so, and it is unclear how much of a difference the move by Ireland, Spain and non-EU member Norway might make on the ground. The recognition, however, is a significant accomplishment for the Palestinians, who believe it confers international legitimacy on their struggle.

Europa:

(Bloomberg) Macron, Scholz Plan Joint Push to Boost European Air Defense

• France and Germany are aiming to unveil plans this week for closer cooperation to strengthen Europe’s air defenses as they respond to pressure for Europeans to commit to their own security after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
• The initiative is one of several policy areas, including capital markets reform, that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and France’s Emmanuel Macron will discuss on Tuesday at the end of a three-day state visit by the French president, according to people familiar with the matter.
• Options include adding another European air-defense system to complement the more short-term, German-led European Sky Shield Initiative (ESSI), the people said. The ESSI incorporates Israeli Arrow 3 and US Patriot missiles, as well as the German-made IRIS-T system, and is backed by 21 countries. France has developed a system known as SAMP-T, or Mamba, with Italy.
• Another possibility would be to join a similar project proposed by Greece and Poland this month, which has the support of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. France may also emphasize the role its nuclear deterrent could play in Europe. This may come on top of working on complementary deep-strike capabilities, the people said.
• They cautioned that the exact details of the cooperation are still under discussion, but people from both countries emphasized the importance of Europe showcasing its strength and commitment to defense before NATO allies meet in Washington DC in July.

Lituania: 

(REUTERS) Lithuanian Nauseda calls victory in presidential election

• Lithuanian Gitanas Nauseda announced his re-election in a presidential ballot on Sunday, following a campaign dominated by security concerns in the European Union and NATO member next door to Russia.
• The Baltic nation of 2.8 million people has been a staunch ally of Ukraine since Russia's 2022 invasion. Like other countries in the region, it worries it could be Moscow's next target. 
• Ballots from nearly 90% of polling stations showed Nauseda, 60, winning roughly three quarters of the vote, followed by Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte, 49, from the ruling centre-right Homeland Union party. If confirmed by final results, Nauseda's backing in his bid for a second term will be highest in the country since it split from the Soviet Union in 1991.
• Just over half of Lithuanians believe a Russian attack is possible or even very likely, according to a ELTA/Baltijos Tyrimai poll conducted between February and March. Russia has regularly dismissed concerns that it might attack a NATO member.
• Lithuania's president has a semi-executive role, which includes heading the armed forces, chairing the supreme defence and national security policy body and representing the country at EU and NATO summits.
• The president sets foreign and security policy in tandem with the government, can veto laws and has a say in the appointment of key officials such as judges, the chief prosecutor, the chief of defence and the head of the central bank.

Politica internazionale

Medio Oriente

Egitto:

(REUTERS) Egyptian guard killed in shooting on Rafah border, Israel and Egypt investigating

• A member of Egypt's security forces was killed in a shooting incident near the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip and an investigation is under way, Egypt's military spokesperson said in a statement on Monday.
• Israel's military had earlier said it was investigating reports of an exchange of fire between Israeli and Egyptian soldiers.
• Preliminary investigations showed that Egyptian security personnel had reacted to an exchange of gunfire "between Israeli forces and members of the Palestinian resistance, which led to shooting in several directions," the source said, adding that Egypt would take necessary measures to prevent the incident from recurring.
• Israel seized control of the Rafah border crossing from the Gaza side of the border earlier this month as it stepped up its military offensive in the area, drawing strong criticism from Egypt.
• Egypt is worried that Palestinians could be displaced from southern Gaza by the offensive, and has also repeatedly accused Israel of holding up deliveries of humanitarian aid to the territory, something Israel denies.

Asia e Pacifico

Nuova Caledonia (Francia): 

(Associated Press) France to lift state of emergency in efforts to allow political dialogue in riot-hit New Caledonia

• French President Emmanuel Macron decided on Monday to lift the state of emergency in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia in a move meant to allow political dialogue following the unrest that left seven people dead and a trail of destruction, his office said.
• The president’s office said in a statement that the state of emergency won’t be extended “for the moment” and will therefore end Monday at 8 p.m. in Paris, which is 5 a.m. Tuesday in New Caledonia.
• The decision aims at “enabling meetings of the various components” of pro-independence movement FLNKS, the Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front, and allowing elected officials and other local leaders “in a position to call” for lifting the barricades to go there and meet with protesters, the statement said.
• New Caledonia’s top French official, High Commissioner Louis Le Franc said on Monday that an evening and overnight curfew will remain in place. Travel will be banned between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. local time except for civil servants, medical professionals and other essential workers on night shifts and health emergencies. New Caledonia’s ban on public gatherings, transport and carrying of weapons and sale of alcohol will also remain in place, Le Franc said.