Also, a possible Saudi-U.S. defense treaty. Here’s the latest at the end of Tuesday.
At the annual gathering of world leaders at the U.N. today in New York City, President Biden tried to rally the world to stick with Ukraine and warned against appeasing Moscow in a way that would reward its aggression.
“Russia believes that the world will grow weary and allow it to brutalize Ukraine without consequence,” Biden told the General Assembly. “But I ask you this: If we abandon the core principles” of the United Nations Charter “to appease an aggressor, can any member state in this body feel confident that they are protected?”
President Volodymyr Zelensky gave his own speech soon afterward, presenting Russia’s aggression as an unrelenting worldwide threat that will not stop at the borders of Ukraine.
“The goal of the present war against Ukraine is to turn our land, our people, our lives, our resources into a weapon against you, against the international rules-based order,” Zelensky told the leaders. He added that Russia was weaponizing essentials like food and energy “not only against our country, but against all of yours as well.”
The remarks come at a perilous moment for Ukraine. War fatigue appears to be growing both in the U.S. and elsewhere, and House Republicans in Washington have held up further military aid. Ukraine’s progress on the ground has also been slow and bloody, and neutral nations continue to remain on the sidelines or to even facilitate the Russian invasion.The U.S. and Saudi Arabia consider a defense treaty
American and Saudi officials are discussing a mutual defense treaty that would provide Saudi Arabia with U.S. military support if it was attacked. The discussions are central to the White House’s effort to get Saudi Arabia to normalize relations with Israel.
The structure of the treaty would be modeled after the military pacts that the U.S. has with Japan and South Korea, which are considered the strongest among non-NATO allies, U.S. officials said. Any agreement, however, is likely to face strong objections in Congress, where lawmakers in both parties see the Saudis as unreliable partners who care little about U.S. interests or human rights.Tensions between Canada and India escalate over killing
Since Canada’s prime minister, Justin Trudeau, accused India yesterday of being involved in the killing of a Canadian citizen in June, both sides have been in an all-out diplomatic war. Trudeau firmly rejected the Indian government’s denial of any involvement in the assassination and pressed his allies to come together to challenge India. New Delhi moved to expel a top Canadian diplomat, and Indian officials lined up to air their grievances with Canada.
