What Actually Mattered This Week: Navalny and Novichok, Lebanon's New PM, Kenosha

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WHAT ACTUALLY MATTERED THIS WEEK

My thoughts on some of this week’s biggest news stories:

Novichok nerve agent used in Alexey Navalny poisoning, says German government

Same nerve agent Russian government denied using against the Skripals in Salisbury, 2018.

After Kremlin “denials” of involvement in the MH17 downing, little green men in Ukraine, and the poisoning of Sergei Skripal, a denial of Alexei Navalny’s poisoning (by Novichok, no less) is as expected as it is irrelevant.

Lebanon Taps a New Prime Minister Amid Swirling Crises

The new prime minister is Mustafa Adib, whom most people haven’t heard of. In part, it's because Lebanon is impossible to govern and can't agree on any of the well-known and outspoken figures.

I wish this guy well. I can't imagine we're going to be hearing from him for very long—he’ll have to manage coronavirus on top of massive economic challenges—but that is the situation in Lebanon. Godspeed.

Trump visits Kenosha, calls violence ‘domestic terrorism’

Trump election strategy looks like Wag the Dog, but Kenosha instead of Albania.

Prefer long-form analysis? Here are my thoughts on what happens next in Mali after the coup.

TRUTHS, DAMNED TRUTHS, AND STATISTICS

% saying their country has done a good job dealing with the covid outbreak:

Denmark 95%

Canada 88%

Germany 88%

S Korea 86%

Italy 74%

Sweden 71%

France 59%

Japan 55%

Spain 54%

US 47%

UK 46%

-Pew

THE GZERO WORLD WE’RE JUST LIVING IN

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GRAPHIC TRUTH

YOUR QUICK TAKE

My thoughts on Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s resignation and what it means for Japan: 

WORLD IN 60 SECONDS

Who is Lebanon's new prime minister?

With daily COVID cases surging to record highs, why is India reopening?

What's the update on Belarus? Will Lukashenko fall?

Finally, what to make of recent Far Right protests in Germany?

Find out in this week’s World in 60 Seconds!

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BECAUSE THE INTERNET

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DEEP THOUGHTS

“Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist.” – Pablo Picasso

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Ian Bremmer is president of Eurasia Group and GZERO Media and foreign affairs columnist at TIME. He currently teaches at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs and previously was a professor at New York University. You can follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.