Israeli ambassador to Washington Ron Dermer said today the incoming Biden administration would be making a mistake if it returned to the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran.
Why it matters: President-elect Biden plans to re-enter the deal if Iran returns to compliance, but he will clearly face opposition from Israel. Dermer is Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's closest adviser and his comment reflects Netanyahu’s thinking.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will attend a trilateral summit with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif al-Zayani in Jerusalem Wednesday, Israeli officials told me.
Why it matters: The summit is a follow-up to the agreement establishing peaceful and diplomatic relations between Israel and Bahrain, signed in Manama last month with U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin in attendance. It represents another step in normalizing relations between the two nations.
Why it matters: Peru, which had one of Latin America's strongest economies before the coronavirus pandemic, is expected to face its worst economic downturn in over a century amid the political crisis — which is the worst in two decades, per the Wall Street Journal.
President-elect Joe Biden’s vow to restore America’s leadership in the world will be swiftly tested by resurgent adversaries, rudderless institutions and the gravest global health crisis in decades.
The big picture: Biden will face a familiar antagonist in Moscow, a stronger and more assertive China, a nuclear-armed North Korea, and an ongoing war in Afghanistan. That's not to mention a pandemic that’s ravaged the world and darkened the global economic outlook.
Mexico surpassed 1 million coronavirus cases and over 98,200 deaths from COVID-19 late Saturday, per Johns Hopkins data.
Driving the news: Mexican health officials have focused on testing the seriously ill and conducted only about 2.5 million COVID-19 tests in total — representing 1.9% of the population, AP reports.
Archaeologists in Egypt unveiled Saturday some 40 gilded statues and at least 100 ancient coffins dating back over 2,500 years — and some contain mummies.
The big picture: The find in a vast pharaonic necropolis at Saqqara, south of Cairo, follows 59 intact sarcophagi uncovered at the site in September and October. Tourism and Antiquities Minister Khaled El-Anany told a briefing, "Saqqara has yet to reveal all of its contents," per Al Jazeera. "Excavations are still under way."
