Good morning. Here’s your Daily Situational Awareness for Wednesday, 26 October 2022.
TODAY’S BRIEFING:
- Inside the Beltway
- News & Schedules
- Geopolitics Brief
INSIDE THE BELTWAY
WHITE HOUSE: President Biden holds a bilateral meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog at the White House. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will attend.
CONGRESS: Nothing Significant to Report (NSTR)
DEFENSE: NSTR
STATE: Deputy Secretary Sherman concludes travel to Japan after meeting with Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Mori Takeo, and Republic of Korea First Vice Foreign Minister Cho Hyun-dong
GEOPOLITICS BRIEF
RUSSIAN AUTHORITIES DESIGNATING SHELTER ZONES IN ST. PETERSBURG: Municipal authorities in St. Petersburg announced the creation of a new draft list of safe zones for use in the event of a “natural” or” man-made” emergency. The list identifies seven administrative districts of the city located a distance from the city center as “safe districts” to be used in evacuation measures. The announcement also revealed a separate “unified list” of all buildings and structures in the region capable of serving as civil defense shelters is also being generated by the regional governor’s office. Authorities indicated work was already underway to install signs and markers indicating the location of these shelters.
U.S. AND PACIFIC ALLIES WARN NORTH KOREA AGAINST NUCLEAR TEST: The U.S., Japan and South Korea warned North Korea earlier today that any nuclear tests would result in an “unparalleled” response. Intelligence agencies in the U.S., South Korea and Japan believe that North Korea will attempt a seventh test of a live nuclear detonation in the near future. The U.S. and its allies offered no details on what that “unparalleled” response might be, but the U.S. has deployed B-1B long range bombers and both Japan and South Korea have run practice air strikes recently in response to North Korean missiles tests.
IAEA SENDS INSPECTORS TO UKRAINE: United Nations Atomic Watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Association, announced it would send inspection teams to Ukrainian facilities in the coming days amid Russian claims that Ukraine is producing a Radiological Dispersal Device. IAEA Director General Rafel Grossi said the visits would “detect any possible undeclared nuclear activities and material” as a safeguard. Grossi added that the facilities had been the subject of prior IAEA inspections, with one visit a month ago showing no signs of “undeclared nuclear activities or material.” IAEA officials say the visits come at the request of the Ukrainian government.
BRAZIL RE-EXPORTS FERTILIZER SHIPMENTS: Brazilian authorities at the port of Antonina announced the re-export of a 23,400-ton fertilizer shipment amid ongoing logistics backlogs. Officials say the shipment, which originated in Jordan, would be sent to Turkey after being stored in a customs warehouse since June 16th. The re-export of the cargo was the result of a logistics backlog of unpurchased fertilizers driven by reluctant buyers over high prices and inflationary pressures. Brazil has re-exported 40,400 tons of fertilizer in the last month, with the United States purchasing an earlier shipment.
In today’s Early Warning, the team covers rising concerns of nuclear threats on two fronts. Additionally, the team takes a look at the latest forecasts for food inflation. For access to the full report, visit https://forwardobserver.com/subscribe