The Evening: Israel Softens Stance, Russia Seizes Villages, Boss at Jazz Fest, and More

Newsletter - April 29, 2024

Israel Appears to Soften Stance in Cease-Fire Talks

Israel's latest offer would accept fewer hostages to be freed during the first phase of a new truce in Gaza. And, as the NYT reports, Hamas has not commented on the proposal.

Russia Seizes Villages

Russian forces have seized several villages in eastern Ukraine over the past week, making swift but relatively small gains against threadbare Ukrainian forces who have ceded ground amid a desperate wait for promised U.S. military aid, as the WSJ reports.

NATO Chief Says NATO Hasn't Delivered

NATO countries haven't delivered what they promised to Ukraine in time, the alliance's chief said Monday, allowing Russia to press its advantage while Kyiv's depleted forces wait for military supplies to arrive from the U.S. and Europe, as the AP reports.

Executive Education

Master the ins and outs of trade policy in just two days with CSIS Trade Guys Scott Miller and Bill Reinsch. Join virtually May 13-14 for Crash Course: Trade Policy with the Trade Guysto gain insights into current international trade dynamics, connect with industry professionals, and look over the horizon to see what may be next for U.S. trade policy. Register hereby May 6.

Audio Briefs

CSIS experts give short, spoken-word summaries on the biggest takeaways from their latest reports, white papers, and commentaries-in their own words.

Listen here:"Breaking Bad: South Korea's Nuclear Option" with CSIS's Victor Cha.

In That Number

33

Israel has reduced the number of hostages that it wants Hamas to free during the first phase of a new truce in Gaza to 33, offering a hint of hope for cease-fire negotiations that could restart as soon as Tuesday.
Source: NYT

Critical Quote

"Hamas has before it a proposal that is extraordinarily generous on the part of Israel. And at the moment, the only thing standing between the people of Gaza and a cease-fire is Hamas."

- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken

iDeas Lab

Image

CSIS polling reveals that concerns about a nuclear South Korea are exaggerated: only 34 percent of South Korean strategic elites believe that their government should consider the nuclear option, while upwards of 66 percent disagree or remain uncertain about such a proposition. Read the full CSIS analysis here.

The Andreas C. Dracopoulos iDeas Lab at CSIS enhances our research with the latest in cutting-edge web technologies, design, and multimedia.

Optics

Photo: Kent Nishimura/Getty Images

After gaining control of the encampment area, activists and students chant and sing at University Yard at George Washington University in Washington, DC, on April 29, 2024.

Recommended Reading

"Breaking Bad: South Korea's Nuclear Option" by CSIS's Victor Cha.

This Town Tomorrow

At 10:00 a.m., the CSIS Project on Critical Minerals Security discusses U.S. critical minerals policies and outcomes, the effectiveness of the Inflation Reduction Act, and more.

Then, at 1:00 p.m., the CSIS Defending Democratic Institutions Project hosts a half-day conference highlighting efforts by businesses to cultivate a renewed civic identity and commitment to community across the United States.

Earlier, at 12:00 p.m., the Carnegie Endowment unpacks how societies can manage the risks that non-state actors pose to global security.

Video

Today, the CSIS Korea Chair launched Breaking Bad: South Korea's Nuclear Option, a new report that polled strategic elites in South Korea on the nuclear question. Watch the full video here.

Podcasts

Photo: iLab/CSIS

In the first episode, Bill Ford, Chairman and CEO of General Atlantic, joins the podcast to discuss Bill's journey to General Atlantic, the entrepreneurial ecosystem, the importance of AI as a transformational technology, and more.

Listen on Spotify& Apple Podcasts.

Smiles

The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival continues on to its second week this week. It takes awhile to get good video of the best performances, so I will continue to post some of the classics. There have been so many consequential performances over the years. Maybe none more important and emotional than this one with Bruce Springsteen and his fantastic Seeger Sessions Band eight months after Hurricane Katrina devastated the city.

I invite you to email me at [email protected] and follow me on Twitter @handrewschwartz