Blame game

[View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Follow Us [Get the newsletter]( It’s “one minute to midnight” for the world, according to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, as the U.K. hosts the COP26 climate summit. Not everybody is checking their watches. U.S. President Joe Biden laid blame on Russia and China for a disappointing Group of 20 summit over the weekend in Rome, saying they “basically didn’t show up” on commitments to fight global warming. “It’s going to require us to continue to focus on what China’s not doing, what Russia is not doing or what Saudi Arabia is not doing,” he said. Presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin won’t be among the leaders in Glasgow for COP26 today and tomorrow after skipping the G-20, and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman may be another no-show. They may have concluded there’s little benefit in attending talks where they are cast as the villains of any failure to reach a breakthrough. Along with the U.S. and India, China and Russia are the worst polluters, while Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest oil exporter. Key Reading: - [Biden Chides Russia, China for Failing to Pledge More on Climate]( - [Biden Brings ‘Trust Us’ Pitch to Skeptics at U.N. Climate Summit]( - [COP26 Summit Starts Under Cloud After G-20 Dodges Hard Questions]( - [Big Take: Russia’s Dirty Gas Is Saving Europe From Winter Hell]( - [Boris Johnson Warns Paris Accord Risks Unravelling as COP Starts]( Putin, Xi and the Saudi crown prince have committed to reaching net-zero carbon emissions in their countries by 2060, a source of tension with the European Union and Group of Seven nations that have adopted a 2050 deadline. Russia regards EU lectures on renewables as hypocrisy from a bloc that’s desperate for Russian gas supplies to ease an energy crisis. While the G-20 and COP26 focus on phasing out coal use to slash emissions, China is pressing producers to increase output to combat the energy crunch. Staying away lets Xi and Putin manage the message at home that the West is unfairly making their countries pay the price for the consequences of decades of economic growth enjoyed by the U.S. and Europe. It’s sound domestic politics, even if it does little to alleviate Earth’s climate emergency. — [Anthony Halpin]( A lignite-fired power station in Jaenschwalde, Germany. Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg [Click here]( to see our Bloomberg Politics website and share this newsletter with others too. They can sign up [here](. Global Headlines Democratic progress | Biden’s economic agenda appears on track for passage by Congress, even as Democrats [skirmish]( over differences on a $1.75 trillion social-spending plan. With the party pushing to finalize the deal and vote on it and a smaller infrastructure package this week, a House leadership aide said progress had been made on outstanding issues including drug pricing. - Another high profile U.S. official tested [positive]( for Covid-19. Open line | The U.S. and China agreed to maintain regular communications even as they [spar]( over Taiwan and other issues. Foreign Minister Wang Yi called for exchanges “to manage and control differences” during a meeting with Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Rome. Blinken said they can work together on issues like Iran and the climate while disagreeing on Beijing’s policies toward Hong Kong, Taiwan and Xinjiang. - Power shortages and surging commodity prices hit China’s manufacturing industries last month, while strict Covid controls undercut holiday spending, signaling that economic growth may [undershoot]( expectations. - China [punished]( an unnamed non-governmental organization for collecting “sensitive” maritime data near military sites and sharing it abroad. More than 5 million people have died from Covid-19, less than two years after the novel pathogen was first documented, despite the arrival of vaccines that have slashed fatality rates. Billions more remain [unvaccinated](, either because they lack access to shots or are unwilling to receive them, leaving them vulnerable to an infection that has grown more dangerous over time. Defying odds | Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida preserved his Liberal Democratic Party’s outright majority in yesterday’s elections, [avoiding]( the worst-case scenarios predicted in opinion polls. Japanese stocks jumped on the result, which reduces the chances of Kishida joining his immediate predecessor as a short-term premier. - See Japanese stock moves [here](. Best of Bloomberg Opinion - [Climate Deals Always Fail Before They Succeed: David Fickling]( - [Talks With the Taliban Must Include Women: Bobby Ghosh]( - [Young People Lying Flat Has Been a Long Time Coming: Erin Lowry]( France fuming | President Emmanuel Macron said his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison [lied]( to him over a submarine pact with the U.S. and the U.K. that scuppered a French contract to provide diesel-powered vessels. The French leader isn’t ready to turn the page and, asked if he thought Morrison had lied to him, said “I don’t think” he did. “I know” he did. - The U.K. said it will trigger legal action against France within 48 hours unless a dispute over post-Brexit fishing rights is resolved. [Click here]( for more about the spat that threatens to overshadow the COP26 summit. Opening up | China has been sub-Saharan Africa’s biggest trading partner since 2014, and that investment helped develop industries that now need a market, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni said in an interview. Museveni called on Beijing to grant Africa increased market access to help foster economic ties. Click [here]( for the full story from the interview. An African National Congress campaign event on Oct. 25 in Soweto. Photographer: Sharon Seretlo/Gallo Images/Getty Images South Africa’s ruling party faces a battle to regain control of key towns in today’s municipal elections, with outrage over poor services and crumbling infrastructure. You can read our preview of the vote [here](. Bloomberg TV and Radio air Balance of Power with [David Westin]( weekdays from 12 to 1pm ET, with a second hour on Bloomberg Radio from 1 to 2pm ET. You can watch and listen on Bloomberg channels and online [here]( or check out prior episodes and guest clips [here](. What to Watch This Week - The gap between Chile’s two top presidential candidates [widened](, with conservative Jose Antonio Kast cementing his lead in a poll released just three weeks before the election. - Dissident Tigray forces said they [captured]( a key town that provides access to one of Ethiopia’s main trade routes, continuing a conflict with the national government that started almost a year ago. - TikTok owner ByteDance ordered its employees to end their day by 7 p.m., one of the first tech companies in China to officially mandate [shorter]( working hours. - The Taliban’s spiritual leader Haibatullah Akhundzada made his first public appearance since 2016 at a well-known Islamic seminary, praising the militant group for [sweeping]( to power as the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan. Thanks to the more than 60 readers who answered our quiz on Friday and congratulations to Lee Lambert, who was first to identify Poland as the country the EU threatened to block budget payments to over its refusal to comply with a 500,000 euro-a-day fine linked to shutting down a coal mine. And finally ... Sydney’s international airport became the site of tearful [embraces]( today as some states in Australia dismantled one of the world’s most stringent — and controversial — Covid border regimes for the first time since March 2020. Vaccinated overseas travelers arriving in the two largest states no longer need to quarantine, while millions of Australians living on the east coast can finally leave their home soil without a permit. Sydney Airport today. Photographer: Brendon Thorne/Bloomberg  Like Balance of Power? [Get unlimited access to Bloomberg.com](, where you'll find trusted, data-based journalism in 120 countries around the world and expert analysis from exclusive daily newsletters. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Balance of Power newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Bloomberg.com]( | [Contact Us]( [Ads Powered By Liveintent]( | [Ad Choices]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022