JERUSALEM-Saudi Arabia’s surprise agreement to renew diplomatic relations with Iran marks a significant blow to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s key foreign-policy goal: creating a regional alliance built around isolating Iran.
Mr. Netanyahu has long led the charge to garner international support for isolating Iran and halting its efforts to acquire nuclear weapons. Israel views Iran as its primary global foe because of its support for proxy militias across the Middle East that target Israel, such as Lebanon-based Hezbollah and Gaza-based Hamas, both designated as terrorist organizations by the U.S.
GLOBAL NEWS
SVB, Signature Bank Depositors to Get All Their Money as Fed Moves to Stem Crisis
U.S. regulators took control of a second bank Sunday and announced emergency measures to ease fears depositors might pull their money from smaller lenders after the swift collapse late last week of Silicon Valley Bank.
The measures, which include guaranteeing all deposits of SVB, were designed to shore up wavering confidence in the banking system. They were jointly announced Sunday night by the Treasury Department, the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
Critical-Mineral Diplomacy Needs to Focus on Supply, Not Demand
Diplomacy has a role to play in creating non-Chinese supply chains for renewable energy-but not this kind of diplomacy.
Politicians are talking a lot about critical minerals: metals, such as lithium and rare earths, that today are turned into valuable manufacturing inputs mainly in China, and that in the future will be needed in much greater quantities for things like electric vehicles and wind turbines. On Friday, the subject played a starring role in a meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. This week, the European Union will launch a Critical Raw Materials Act to improve its green-energy security.
Regulators Face Urgent Task to Stem Spread From Silicon Valley Bank
Bank regulators raced over the weekend to avoid a broader crisis from Friday’s stunningly hasty collapse of Silicon Valley Bank by trying to sell the lender’s assets to shield the banking system and economy from wider fallout.
U.S. regulators on Sunday said they are auctioning the failed bank, according to people familiar with the matter. Treasury officials confirmed the auction to congressional lawmakers and staff on a call Sunday afternoon, the people said.
VCs Ease Back From Emergency Loans to Startups Caught Up in SVB Meltdown
Investors and venture capitalists who were coming up with low-interest loans and other ways to help raise cash for startups struggling to meet expenses following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank heaved a sigh of relief after federal regulators announced an emergency rescue plan.
Depositors at Silicon Valley Bank will have access to all their funds on Monday, regulators said, as part of an emergency plan to stem potential spillovers from the bank’s swift collapse. Regulators are trying to auction the bank which was taken over by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
China’s Premier Seeks to Soothe Anxieties About Economy, Business Environment
China’s new premier pledged to shore up growth and restore business confidence in the world’s second-largest economy, seeking to assure the world that Beijing can overcome domestic difficulties and diplomatic tensions that have buffeted his country in recent months.
Li Qiang, at his first press briefing in his new government role, acknowledged China won’t find it easy to meet its relatively conservative target of expanding gross domestic product by about 5% this year, as the government focuses on delivering stable prices, creating jobs and supplying ample housing.
Biden Declares U.S. Arctic Ocean Off Limits to New Oil and Gas Leasing
WASHINGTON-President Biden moved to block future oil and gas leasing in the Arctic Ocean’s federal waters, part of a sweeping plan to protect 16 million acres of land and water in Alaska.
Sunday’s announcement comes as the administration is preparing to approve the massive Willow oil-drilling project in the Alaskan Arctic over the objections of environmentalists and many Democrats who wanted the project scuttled, according to people familiar with the matter.
Wall Street Braces for the Next Silicon Valley Bank
Investors were worried that the fastest interest-rate increases in decades meant that something in the economy might break.
Last week, it did. Now, investors are asking: What else might crack?
Regulators Look at Potential Bias in Life-Insurance Algorithms
State regulators are pushing back on U.S. life insurers’ use of data science to speed up cumbersome application processes, citing concerns that artificial intelligence could unfairly discriminate against minorities.
Colorado’s Division of Insurance has begun crafting regulations under a new state law restricting insurers’ use of algorithms, predictive models and the information fed into them in a far-reaching effort closely watched by the industry.
Biden’s TikTok Dilemma: A Ban Could Hurt Democrats More Than Republicans
WASHINGTON-Many Republicans and some Democrats are clamoring for action to address a perceived security risk from Chinese-owned TikTok, but one political leader has been largely silent: President Biden.
Mr. Biden and his aides have demurred when asked about potential actions to restrict TikTok, saying they are awaiting recommendations from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., or Cfius.
North Korea Launches Two Cruise Missiles From Experimental Submarine
SEOUL-North Korea launched two underwater cruise missiles from a submarine, the regime said Monday, ahead of the start of large-scale joint U.S. and South Korea military drills this week.
The missiles, which were fired early Sunday morning into the waters off the east coast of the Korean Peninsula, demonstrated the reliability of a system that constitutes one of the country’s nuclear deterrents, North Korean state media said Monday. The missiles were fired from the 8.24 Yongung submarine and traveled for about 932 miles before hitting the target, state media said.
China Plans New Middle East Summit as Diplomatic Role Takes Shape
When Arab leaders met Xi Jinping at a regional summit in Riyadh last December, the Chinese head of state pitched an unprecedented idea: a high-level gathering of Gulf Arab monarchs and Iranian officials in Beijing in 2023, people familiar with the plan said. Days later, Tehran signed on as well.
By Friday, China had brokered a deal to restore relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia, which had gone seven years without ties. The broader summit between Iran and the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, which hasn’t previously been reported, is on track for later this year, the people said.
Biden’s Budget Plan Offers Blueprint for 2024 Campaign Fights With GOP
WASHINGTON-President Biden’s $6.9 trillion budget proposal is a road map for his fights to come with congressional Republicans and his GOP opponent in his expected 2024 re-election campaign.
The plan Mr. Biden released Thursday will find little support in the House, where Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.) is preparing his own budget proposal and must overcome his intraparty divisions. The document will showcase the president’s differences with Republicans on Capitol Hill and in the 2024 field. Republicans in turn will use Mr. Biden’s budget-including its plans to raise taxes and increase spending-as fuel for their case that he doesn’t deserve a second term.
British Prime Minister Says China Presents ‘Epoch-Defining’ Challenge
China poses an “epoch-defining systemic challenge” to the U.K. and its allies, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Sunday, as the U.K. government said it would spend an extra $6 billion on its nuclear-armed submarine fleet and replenishing munitions stockpiles to bolster support for Ukraine and deter an increasingly assertive China.
“It’s a country with fundamentally different values to ours, and I think over the last few years it’s become increasingly authoritarian at home and assertive abroad,” Mr. Sunak said of China, during an interview. “Its behavior suggests it has the intention-but also its actions show it is interested in reshaping the world order and that’s the crux of it.”
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This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 13, 2023 07:19 ET (11:19 GMT)
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