ITK Daily is geopolitical business intelligence.
Happy Tuesday.
Here’s today’s ITK Daily.
To be ITK, know this:
AP: US pledges to help Australia manufacture guided missiles by 2025
The Times: US and Australia seal military deal to face China
+ The United States is to send more troops and military aircraft to Australia and embed spies with Canberra’s intelligence agencies in an unprecedented peacetime move to counter the perceived threat from China.
Italy and US eye deeper ties as Rome weighs pivot from China: Reuters reports Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has briefed US President Joe Biden on her plan to curb Italy’s reliance on China and to establish balanced ties with the Asian country, as she mulls a strategy to disentangle from a controversial investment pact.
Italy intends to leave China’s Belt and Road Initiative; defense minister says: Politico reports Rome seeks to exit the BRI ‘without doing damage’ to its relationship with Beijing, defense chief Guido Crosetto tells Corriere della Sera.
Xi leans on old friends to enforce party discipline in China's military: Nikkei reports Chinese leader stresses loyalty, fight against corruption ahead of PLA anniversary.
Absolute loyalty’: Xi Jinping turns anti-corruption focus to China’s military: FT reports senior officers in nuclear weapons division under scrutiny as president strengthens party’s control over armed forces.
China: The return of Wang Yi, Xi Jinping's trusted old hand: After the ousting of Qin Gang, Wang Yi has returned to the head of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs only seven months after leaving his post. Le Monde
Beijing is still too confident about China’s economy: WSJ reports even after second-quarter malaise, Beijing still seems inclined to stick to half measures. That could be a historic mistake.
China’s miracle growth story may be ending Bloomberg
Bloomberg: China cancels TEDx event over foreign influence concerns
Confidence just oozes outs of Beijing...
The UK government is to issue at least 100 new oil and gas licenses for the North Sea, while also funding a large carbon capture project in Aberdeenshire.
How wars end: In 1815, Napoleon lost and diplomacy triumphed: 'Making peace' (1/6). Le Monde explores how the wars that marked Europe's history over the last 200 years came to an end, starting with the Congress of Vienna, which concluded the Napoleonic wars. Le Monde
Kyiv seeks US security pledges: DW reports Ukraine and the United States are to begin talks on security guarantees while the country's accession to NATO is pending. Meanwhile, Russian missiles have hit the city of Kryvyi Rih.
+ Drones have struck Moscow and western Russia for a second night.
How the Russian propaganda machine works in Africa: The Wagner Group has conquered the continent with the help of its mercenaries, as well as fake news outlets and influencers, drawing on a strong rejection of the West in general – and France in particular. Le Monde
Niger coup leaders detain ministers, party officials: WSJ reports the move dealt a blow to efforts by African nations to find a diplomatic solution to the crisis that has shaken a US counterterrorism ally.
ECOWAS threatens 'use of force' against Niger junta: DW reports the West African economic bloc, ECOWAS, has given coup leaders in Niger one week to cede power and reinstate the country's democratically elected president, Mohamed Bazoum — or face possible military intervention.
Germany suspends cooperation with Niger after coup: DW reports Germany has said it is putting financial and development aid to Niger on hold following last week's coup. However, officials added that evacuation of German citizens or soldiers is not currently considered necessary.
Biden administration unwilling to call Niger coup a ‘coup’: Politico reports the legal decision that the West African country has had a coup could force the US to stop sending military aid.
AP: Biden decides to keep Space Command in Colorado, rejecting move to Alabama
WP: Biden, reversing Trump, won’t move military’s Space Command to Alabama
NYT: Trump crushing DeSantis and GOP rivals, Times/Siena poll finds
Why Ron DeSantis is stalling in race for the White House: Underneath the Republican primary candidate's display of confidence, his lack of charisma and his stances on issues such as abortion are disadvantages against Donald Trump, who is racing ahead in the polls. Le Monde
DeSantis super PAC relies heavily on million-dollar mega-donors: WP reports Never Back Down, a group supporting the Florida governor’s 2024 presidential bid, includes wealthy backers who used to support Donald Trump.
WSJ: DeSantis says he would eye US ban of TikTok if elected president
Bloomberg: Oil tycoon Harold Hamm cuts Trump support while backing DeSantis, Haley
Oil magnate told Donald Trump to drop presidential bid and become ‘kingmaker’: FT reports shale pioneer Harold Hamm says US needs to move beyond ‘chaos’ dogging former president.
Americans’ confidence in the US military lowest in 2 decades, poll finds: Politico reports only 60 percent of Americans expressed “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in the military in a recent Gallup poll.
NYT: Heat is costing the US economy billions in lost productivity
This is the era of zombie Twitter: The bird may be dead, but Twitter—er, X—is still alive for communities, news, and memes. Amanda Hoover
Never mind, tweets should be called posts now: X, the company formerly known as Twitter, is experimenting with changing the ‘tweet’ button to ‘post,’ and we should do the same. Alex Cranz
Learning from Twitter’s X-periment: 5 rebranding successes and failures: Twitter’s name change to X has been largely derided but it is not the first to make such a switch. How can other businesses avoid Elon Musk’s rebranding failure? Sam Forsdick
Disney taps two former executives to help sell ESPN stake: Bloomberg reports Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs will evaluate strategic partners for ESPN sports networks.
How Silicon Valley is helping the Pentagon in the AI arms race: The US military is opening up to defense and weapons start-ups as evolving technology begins to transform modern warfare. FT
AI’s growing legal troubles: Without Section 230 protection, copyright issues and defamation suits are cropping up. Andy Kessler
Birkenstock owner eyes $8bn valuation in September IPO: FT reports L Catterton seeks bumper return after buying a majority stake in 2021.
WP: Paul Reubens, Pee-wee Herman actor, dies at 70
Birds are real! The Baltimore Orioles are soaring: A forlorn American League franchise lifts itself from the basement. Playoff fever beckons. Jason Gay
The PAC-12 is almost the PAC-8 again. Can it survive the college sports consolidation? Colorado’s decision to leave the conference—a year after UCLA and USC said they are leaving—has left a powerhouse of collegiate sports reeling. WSJ
Enjoy the ride + plan accordingly.
-Marc
Marc A. Ross | Chief Communications Strategist @ Caracal
Caracal produces ITK Daily.
Geopolitics is disrupting every business and industry.
Caracal is here to help.
Caracal demystifies geopolitics and then helps you talk about geopolitics.
Led by a Michigan-born and DC-based global business advocate with experience in US and UK national political campaigns, US-China commercial relations, NATO, and media engagement, Caracal is a geopolitical business communications firm specializing in global business issues at the intersection of globalization, disruption, and politics.
Caracal lives and breathes at the intersection of globalization, disruption, and politics, home of the world's most savvy participants.
Clients are Chief Communications Officers and executives responsible for corporate affairs, public affairs, and communications who rely on Caracal for help navigating today's interconnected business environment with intelligence, strategy, and engagement.
Caracal believes that to be a world-class geopolitical business communicator, you need global street smarts coupled with holistic, high-frequency, and high-low communications.
