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The Weekly GAB Friday, November 16, 2018
U.S. Global Leadership Coalition | www.usglc.org
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USGLC in the News

THE ADVOCATE
House of Representatives Reauthorizes Global AIDS Initiative |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=Bj_Rmfg-ggh7ah1gP76pEw

Jacob Ogles

The House of Representatives on Tuesday reauthorized the
President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, an
initiative launched 15 years ago by President George W. Bush. Liz
Schrayer, president of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, announced
the reauthorization yesterday and thanked bipartisan champions of the
legislation. The Coalition says the PEPFAR over its first 15 years can
be credited with 15 million lives saved and 2 million babies born
HIV-free.

Who's in the News

THE WASHINGTON POST

Trump Names Retired General John Abizaid to Be Ambassador to Saudi
Arabia |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=bxmSoloyGzSChYKxneWdDA

Anne Gearan and Dan Lamothe

President Trump announced Tuesday that he will nominate retired Army
Gen. John Abizaid to become the U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia,
filling a vacancy that was spotlighted by the difficult diplomacy
between the United States and Riyadh over the killing of journalist
Jamal Khashoggi. The post has been vacant throughout Trump's
presidency. Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have blamed
Senate Democrats for holding up nominations, but no one had been
nominated for the job until now. Turkey, where Washington Post
contributing columnist Khashoggi was killed last month, also has no
U.S. ambassador.

Development & Diplomacy

NPR

There's Growing Fear the Ebola Outbreak in Congo Could Get Much Worse
|

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=Nx1-Dt-Bl1cjQa85S8z0mg

Nurith Aizenman

Dr. Pierre Rollin is an expert on Ebola with the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention. Two and a half weeks ago he returned
from the Democratic Republic of Congo, which is now in the fourth
month of an Ebola outbreak. It's not the first time the disease has
struck in Congo. Rollin has been visiting for more than 20 years to
respond to periodic Ebola outbreaks... More than 300 people have
already been infected, making this outbreak the biggest in DRC
history... Unlike previous outbreaks in DRC this one is taking place
in an eastern part of the country that is wracked by conflict. AP NEWS

AP NEWS

Congo Rebels Attack as Aid Workers Battle Worst Ebola Outbreak in
Nation's History |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=dbkFvu47sjGTCtPN9lseig

Tom Howell Jr.

The Ebola outbreak in Congo has infected nearly 330 people, making it
the worst in the troubled nation's history. The tally exceeds
that of Congo's first epidemic, when Ebola was discovered in
1976. It's the third worst in global history, though for now it
trails far behind the outbreak that killed more than 11,000 in West
Africa earlier this decade and the 400-plus cases in Uganda recorded
nearly two decades ago. The outbreak, which is unfolding in a North
Kivu province riven by conflict, also passed a grim milestone over the
weekend: The World Health Organization said the death toll now exceeds
200.

AP NEWS
Bangladesh Scraps Rohingya Return, Says No One Wants to Go |
http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=TX1M71UPYJJrgWtDObNUVw

Julhas Alam and Emily Schmall

The head of Bangladesh's refugee commission said plans to begin
the repatriation of 700,000 Rohingya Muslims to Myanmar on Thursday
were scrapped after officials were unable to find anyone who wanted to
return. The refugees "are not willing to go back now,"
Refugee Commissioner Abul Kalam told The Associated Press. He said
officials "can't force them to go" but will continue
to try to "motivate them so it happens." Some people on
the government's repatriation list disappeared into the
sprawling refugee camps to avoid being sent home, while others joined
a large demonstration against the plan.

REUTERS
U.N. Palestinian Aid Agency Narrows Funding Gap After Trump Exit |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=DwCJzwAxCt4F88REqcvWnQ

Tom Miles

The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees has almost closed a funding
gap caused by the loss of $300 million in U.S. contributions, its
chief said on Tuesday. The Trump administration pulled the bulk of
U.S. funding of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in January
after a U.N. General Assembly vote rejected Washington's
recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Since President
Donald Trump's move, the EU has become UNRWA's largest
single donor, Japan had increased its funding, and four Gulf countries
- Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates - had
contributed $200 million, according to UNRWA chief Pierre
Kraehenbuehl.

THE HILL

Leverage the New US International Development Finance Corporation to
Compete with China

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=4pu-J6y0Fy7atmeXT9_YkQ

Daniel Kliman, Center for a New American Security

The United States has a unique opportunity to up its game in the
global economic competition with China... In recent years, China has
advanced its influence across the developing world under the umbrella
of what it calls "One Belt, One Road." This Belt and Road
strategy envisions a world connected by a web of Chinese-funded
physical and digital infrastructure... Recognizing that China's
Belt and Road strategy is a power play intended to position Beijing to
shape the course of the 21st century, the United States this year has
begun to formulate an economic response. However, a lack of resources
has remained America's Achilles heel.

DEVEX
OECD Calls for Overhaul of the Development Finance System |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=R2_2LOopHc_Xkn_4EqkdOA

Rebecca Root

The development finance system needs overhauling, according to the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, which gathers
key economic data and aid spending figures from the world's
major economies. In a report published Monday, the global forum
identified a significant decline in external funding - foreign
sources of funding that have the potential to affect development
progress - to low-income countries. The figures indicate that
the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development will not be achieved under
the current system, the report states.

THE HILL
Central America Needs Effective United States Economic Policies

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=HlsQWd73pva6eiQtYVK_EQ

Matthew Rooney, George Bush Institute

The proximity of Central America and the presence of its communities
in the United States means it impacts our own security and prosperity.
An effective policy response must begin by acknowledging that Central
America has been working hard to address its challenges, some of which
are not of its own making, with mixed success... The region has highly
unequal societies and poverty is a stubborn problem challenging
policymakers in Central America... The next wave of economic reforms
should be supported by the United States to reduce the current
constraints to growth in Central America. Targeted initiatives by
Congress should use our foreign assistance funds and expertise to
overcome the hurdles to success.

Politics & Foreign Policy

NBC NEWS

Second Trump-Kim Summit to Go Ahead Without List of Nuclear North
Korean Weapons, Pence Says |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=A5Vq7VBo1cGEw0PhDui2yA

Caitlin Oprysko

The U.S. will not require North Korea to provide a complete list of
its nuclear weapons and missile sites before President Donald Trump
and the North's leader Kim Jong Un meet for a second time, Vice
President Mike Pence told NBC News exclusively on Thursday. Since an
initial agreement for denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula was
reached between Trump and Kim in June, the United States has pressed
the North Koreans to provide information on the entirety of its
nuclear operations.

YAHOO NEWS

Next US House Foreign Affairs Chief Vows to Check Trump, Warns Russia
|

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=fCnvlD-LR-g1UDzoWvzhAQ

Shaun Tandon

The incoming head of the US House Foreign Affairs Committee warned
Thursday of election-related sanctions against Russia and vowed
oversight of Donald Trump's diplomacy, which he said had made
Americans "laughingstocks." Representative Eliot Engel, who is the
presumptive next chairman of the committee after Democrats triumphed
in November 6 elections, vowed the new Congress would question the
executive branch, a constitutional role he said the Republicans
neglected for fear of irritating Trump.

NPR

Deputy National Security Adviser Leaves Post After Criticism from
Melania Trump |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=-WcZ-c9guc0EC9huZm8sJg

Emily Sullivan

A day after Deputy National Security Adviser Mira Ricardel faced
public criticism from the office of the first lady, the White House on
Wednesday announced that she will be leaving her post. Ricardel
"departs the White House to transition to a new role within the
administration," White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said in a
statement on Wednesday. Sanders did not specify the aide's new role...
Ricardel reportedly had a series of abrasive run-ins with members of
the first lady's staff. The Washington Post reports they were "partly
rooted in a bureaucratic dispute over the seating arrangements aboard
first lady Melania Trump's plane to Africa last month."

REUTERS
Trump to Nominate Handbag Designer as New South African Ambassador |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=vz5xzw4HQFrabFI8YTcNKw

Alexander Winning, James Macharia, Angus MacSwan

U.S. President Donald Trump intends to nominate luxury handbag
designer Lana Marks as the new ambassador to South Africa, the White
House said, almost two years after the last ambassador left under
Barack Obama. The nomination comes at a time of frayed relations
between the two countries after a tweet in August in which Trump asked
his secretary of state to study South African "land and farm
seizures". South Africa accused Trump of stoking racial
divisions with the comments, which it called
"misinformed".

NPR

China's Building Spree in Poor Nations: Does it Really Help the Local
Economy? |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=M_lVpP3pKprLo3quFDfKPQ

Joanne Lu

China has done a ton of building in the developing world. Over the
past two decades, it has financed and built bridges, hospitals, roads,
railways, airports and seaports - many billions of dollars'
worth and counting... Skeptics say the Chinese projects are of little
use to the countries, often in Africa, where they're built... "It
could be anecdotally true that a given project was a white elephant,
but it isn't systematically true," says Bradley Parks, one of the
study's authors and executive director of AidData. Parks says that
according to his team's research, there is a strong correlation
between Chinese projects and economic growth in the countries where
they're built.

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
U.S. Fights China for Influence, One Project at a Time |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=YHBYFS7Bevzb0fi3CkH3bw

Niharika Mandhana

The U.S. has launched a new strategy aimed at ramping up investment in
Asia to vie with Chinese President Xi Jinping's overseas
infrastructure-building spree, as Beijing grapples with setbacks to
its sprawling program. But China has a head start-and a
state-led model that makes it easier to finance and build on a large
scale... In October, President Trump signed into law the Build Act,
which creates a new development finance agency that offers loans, loan
guarantees and political-risk insurance to private companies. Mr.
Trump said last year that this strategy would offer "strong
alternatives to state-directed initiatives that come with many strings
attached," a reference to Beijing's plan. The goal,
proponents say, is to encourage businesses to invest in low-income
countries and spur growth with projects that make economic sense.

BLOOMBERG
U.S. Sanctions Saudis, Alleging Involvement in Khashoggi Murder |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=-8LbJtvCRBzZ3Gvs5S1gVA

Nick Wadhams and Saleha Mohsin

The Trump administration's sanctions against 17 Saudis
implicated in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi reflected a
delicate balance: the need to acknowledge global outrage at the
kingdom's brazen behavior without rupturing ties with Crown
Prince Mohammed bin Salman... Critics in Congress, outside experts and
even some U.S. government officials said that the measures announced
on Thursday are only an initial step. And the timing of the U.S. move,
coming hours after a Saudi prosecutor's announcement, as well as
the focus on officials already flagged by the kingdom, fueled
skepticism about U.S. objectives.

FOREIGN POLICY
Does Heather Nauert Have What It Takes? |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=fVr-hORNymEZI-mwvRbUOA

Michael Hirsh

No one who has worked with Heather Nauert doubts that she's a
pretty good briefer, or that the former Fox & Friends host is a
winning personality on camera. But longtime U.N. observers say Nauert,
who is said to be U.S. President Donald Trump's leading
candidate to replace outgoing United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley,
would also be the least qualified person ever to hold the job and
follow in the footsteps of notables such as Adlai Stevenson, Daniel
Patrick Moynihan, Madeleine Albright, and Richard Holbrooke.


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