China

• Hong Kong rushed to pass new national security laws to broaden the scope of the laws China imposed on the territory in 2020: now journalists, academics, and employees of multinational companies can be scrutinized for anything authorities deem to meet vague definitions of "external interference."
• The NYT noted that reactions to the new laws in Hong Kong were muted this time: "The first attempt to pass such legislation, in 2003, set off mass protests. But since 2020, when China imposed its own security law on Hong Kong, opposition figures have been jailed and public protests quelled. This time, the streets of Hong Kong were quiet."
• Externally, the EU and UN criticized the new laws, which the UN called "incompatible" with international human rights rules.
• Another NYT article pointed out that Hong Kong's willingness to comply with Beijing's demands is threatening its standing as a financial hub and causing multinational companies to consider shifting their regional operations to Singapore instead.
• Hong Kong's chief executive argued that the tightened laws were necessary to block foreign meddling, which is similar to the rationale driving Beijing's newly expanded mainland national security laws.

• Ukraine took Pres. Putin's recent proposal for a border buffer zone in the parts of Ukraine it doesn't already control as a threat to escalate the war, and analysts seemed to agree: several thought Putin will need to call up a new draft to secure border regions around Kharkiv, where many of the incursions into Russia's Belgorod region originate.
• Separately, UK analysts assessed that Russia's navy is limiting its operations in the Black Sea to "preserve its fleet," which has already lost around one-third of its vessels to Ukrainian drone warfare.

• A day after agreeing to send Israeli officials to Washington to discuss alternatives for a ground offensive in Rafah, PM Netanyahu told Israeli lawmakers a ground invasion of Rafah is necessary and there are no alternatives to discuss.
• A State Department spokesman acknowledged: "we are just squarely in a different place and have a different viewpoint."
• Yet despite Netanyahu's firm stance, the Times of Israel reported that U.S. officials plan to pitch the visiting Israelis on a plan to secure the Gaza-Egypt border as an alternative to "smashing into Rafah."
• Separately, China acknowledged that one of its diplomats, Wang Kejian, met Hamas's political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, for talks on Gaza in Qatar on Sunday. It's the first known meeting between China and Hamas since Oct. 7, and suggests China may be seeking a bigger role in regional diplomacy.

• Armenian PM Pashinyan is prepared to concede four villages along the previously disputed border with Azerbaijan to Baku in order to avoid another war, which he warned "could erupt by the end of the week" without his concessions.
• Many Armenians who live along the border think Pashinyan has already offered Baku too many concessions and oppose his plan to offer more. He's visiting the affected villages this week to plea his case.

• India's navy recaptured the Maltese-flagged MV Ruen bulk carrier near Socotra, Yemen more than three months after it was hijacked by Somali pirates, securing the surrender of 35 pirates and safely evacuating 17 crew members.
• Military analysts were impressed by the bold Indian operation and the MARCOS commandos involved in it, who have also led operations against Houthi attacks recently.

• This year's World Happiness Report showed that Finns are the happiest population for the seventh year running. Afghans and Lebanese polled as the least happy.