What Actually Mattered This Week: Where is Kate Middleton? (Just Kidding, I Don’t Care)

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WHAT ACTUALLY MATTERED THIS WEEK

House passes bill that would ban TikTok if its Chinese owners don't sell the popular app

In my ideal world, the US and China would engage in competition, not confrontation.

But as I said last year, I support a TikTok ban (If China opened up its internet to American social media companies, we’d be having a different conversation).

A reminder of why lawmakers are considering a ban:

- TikTok parent company ByteDance answers to the CCP

- Beijing can weaponize Americans’ data

- It's in Xi Jinping’s best interest to control the algorithm…and further polarize the American public

Russia election: Stage-managed vote will give Putin another term

This election’s gonna be a nail-biter, I just know it… The latest on Putin’s calculus for the war in Ukraine: he has zero interest in negotiating an end to fighting anytime soon.

He thinks that time is on his side and believes he can take more territory in the coming months...especially if Trump wins and cuts off Ukraine aid (as he’s told Hungary’s Prime Minister he would).

Flag of Sweden is raised at NATO headquarters, cementing its place as alliance member

Putin continues to be the singular salesman for NATO strengthening & expansion in the 21st century.

Kate Middleton Doctored Photo: AFP Says Kensington Palace No Longer A “Trusted Source” & Kill Notices Usually Reserved For North Korea

If I never see that photo again, it will be too soon.

TRUTHS, DAMNED TRUTHS, AND STATISTICS

-The New York Times

THE GZERO WORLD WE’RE JUST LIVING IN

THE GRAPHIC TRUTH

YOUR GZERO WORLD

In a wide-ranging conversation with me, filmed live at the historic 92nd Street Y in NYC, bestselling author Yuval Noah Harari delves into the foundational role of storytelling in human civilization, the existential challenges posed by artificial intelligence, the geopolitical implications of the Ukraine war, and the most pressing questions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Harari argues that unlike other species, humans have thrived on their unique ability to construct and believe in shared stories, which has underpinned the formation of societies, governments, and laws. However, this same capability has led to wars, inequality, and exploitation. “Humans don't fight over territory and food,” Harari tells me. They fight over imaginary stories in their minds."

Harari and I discuss the current global crises, including the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, as moments where humanity's collaborative superpower appears to falter. On the Ukraine war, he says that the implications of a Russian victory would spell the end of the global order as we know it. "We could already be in the midst of World War III that started on the 24th of February 2022 with the Russian invasion of Ukraine and we just don't know it yet."

He also specifically addresses the critical situation in Israel, criticizing government attempts to undermine democratic institutions and pointing to an ideological battle that risks altering the essence of Judaism and Israeli identity. Harari also stresses the importance of reconciling support for Palestinian rights with the defense of Israel's existence, challenging the narrative that these positions are inherently contradictory.

For a longer, wider-ranging version of my interview check out the GZERO World podcast.

WORLD IN 60

Four years since the US declared COVID a national emergency, how did it permanently reshape the world?

As the US House goes after TikTok, does it speak to a broader US-China battle?

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

Do you like what you’ve seen? Sign up for GZERO Daily by Ian Bremmer

BECAUSE THE INTERNET

Out: wondering about Kate Middleton’s whereabouts

In: wondering about Ian Bremmer’s whereabouts

WHAT TO READ THIS WEEK

2054: A Novel, by Elliot Ackerman and Admiral James Stavridis

"2054: A Novel," the new book from James Stavridis and Elliot Ackerman, is a chilling and thoughtful work of speculative fiction. But this is not purely a work of imagination. Ackerman is both an award-winning, best-selling author and a decorated United States Marine. Admiral Stavridis, a former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO, brings a depth of knowledge and understanding to this work that (very, very) few authors of fiction can offer. 

DEEP THOUGHTS

When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us." -Helen Keller

Thanks for reading! Please subscribe to GZERO Daily for coverage on global politics. And make sure to read my latest book The Power of Crisis for a roadmap of this decade's great crises and how they might help us build a better world.

I am president of Eurasia Group and GZERO Media and foreign affairs columnist at TIME. I currently teach at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs and previously was a professor at New York University. You can follow me on X, Threads, Facebook, and Instagram.