5,350: Myanmar’s ethnic groups fighting against the junta are up in arms over China hosting junta leader Min Aung Hlaing for the first time since the military coup in 2021. According to a UN report, 5,350 civilians have been killed by the junta. The talks come as ethnic minority militias and pro-democracy fighters are making unprecedented gains in parts of Myanmar, including areas bordering China. and as India is reportedly in talks with some rebels and the shadow pro-democracy government.
2,200: Seventy-seven years after it was sliced, a piece of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip’s wedding cake has sold at auction for £2,200 (US$2,863) to a phone bidder from China. The family selling the slice are the descendants of the queen’s housekeeper, who was gifted it by the royal.
38: US Boeing workers have ended their seven-week strike, accepting the aviation manufacturer's offer of a 38% pay raise over the next four years. The walkout consisted of 30,000 workers demanding a 40% pay rise and has cost Boeing nearly $10 billion.
7: Ever wonder what would have happened if Joe Biden hadn’t dropped out of the presidential race? According to a YouGov, if we lived in an alternative reality where Biden was still on the ballot, Donald Trump would be ahead seven points nationally. In this scenario, such a poll would have translated to a Trump landslide.
While Gaza and Ukraine dominate headlines, dozens of other conflicts—from Haiti to Myanmar to the Congo—get far less global attention. International Crisis Group’s Comfort Ero joins Ian Bremmer on GZERO World.
From civil conflicts to trade wars to the rise of new technologies, GZERO runs through the stories that have shaped this year in geopolitics.
Ukrainian intelligence services assassinated a senior Russian general on the streets of Moscow on Monday, detonating a bomb strapped to his car.
1: French President Emmanuel Macron announced plans to build France’s first aircraft carrier in decades, as Europe accelerates rearmament.