Climate change is scorching the planet: Weekend Reads

Climate change is overheating the planet [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Strong winds hampered efforts to contain wildfires across the Mediterranean from Algeria to Turkey, as the world looked set to record its [hottest ever month]( in July, with scientists putting the extreme heat down to climate change. Kim Jong Un hosted high-level delegations from Russia and China at a military parade in Pyongyang where North Korea [showed off its newest missile]( designed to deliver a nuclear warhead to the US. Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed African leaders to a summit in St. Petersburg, but the boss of the Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, [stole the limelight](, schmoozing with visiting officials and lauding a military coup in the West African nation of Niger. Delve into these and other top stories in this edition of Weekend Reads. —[Karl Maier]( Wildfires on the island of Rhodes in Greece on Tuesday. Photographer: Spyros Bakalis/AFP/Getty Images Check out the [Bloomberg Politics webpage](, and if you are enjoying this newsletter, sign up [here](. An Overheating Planet Requires Supercharged Climate Solutions This year is already highly likely to replace 2016 atop the heat ranking, and scientists suspect the last several years have been warmer than any point in more than 125,000 years. As Eric Roston and John Ainger report, climate change triggered by burning too much fossil fuel is visibly [outrunning our combined efforts]( to stem global warming. - President Joe Biden said extreme heat is costing the [US $100 billion a year](and linked it directly to climate change as he detailed steps his administration is taking to protect Americans from record-high temperatures. - The Group of 20 environment and climate ministers’ meeting in India [failed to reach agreement]( on key issues such as energy transition, cutting emissions, green border taxes and phasing down fossil fuels. Ukraine Counterpunch and Grain Strikes Push War Into New Phase Ukraine kicked off a long-awaited thrust in its counteroffensive with an armored assault on Russian fortifications in the south that may be part of a push to cut Moscow’s land link to its strongholds in occupied Crimea. The drive coincided with [new Russian missile strikes]( against infrastructure in Ukraine’s Odesa region. Ukrainian artillery fire toward Russian positions on the front line in the Donetsk region. Photographer: Genya Savilov/Getty Images Xi Protege’s Sudden Removal Adds to Rough Start for Third Term The ouster of Xi Jinping’s handpicked foreign minister, Qin Gang, shows how the Chinese president’s strengthened grip on power has [failed to insulate him]( from setbacks on some of his biggest policy priorities. While there’s no sign Xi faces any serious threat to his rule, the diplomatic turbulence adds to a long list of challenges facing Beijing. - The US said it [will supply Taiwan]( with $345 million in defense equipment, services and training, a decision that China, which claims Taiwan as part of its territory, quickly criticized. Secret Deals With Russia Help Kim Jong Un Fund Nuclear Program Kim’s grandfather, Kim Il Sung, took the reins of North Korea with Soviet support. Jon Herskovitz and Sangmi Cha write that as the country celebrated [the 70th anniversary of the armistice]( that effectively ended the Korean War, it must once again thank Russia. Kim and his daughter inspect the site of a missile launch at Pyongyang International Airport. Photographer: Korea Central News Agency/Korea News Service/AP Photo Subsidy Wars Heat Up With US Allies Forced to Pay Up or Lose Out Biden’s administration is pouring subsidies into US manufacturing in a bid to create jobs at home and build a lead over China in key technologies. His sweeping new industrial policy has [unleashed a global contest]( that’s straining alliances, threatening budgets and channeling unprecedented amounts of public cash into private companies. - Biden is planning to sign an executive order to [limit critical US technology investments]( in China by mid-August, sources say. Trump Faces New Charges Over Footage in Mar-a-Lago Probe Donald Trump was hit [with new obstruction charges]( in the criminal case over his handling of classified documents, including allegations that he and two employees attempted to delete surveillance video footage at his Mar-a-Lago estate last year. The former president faces as many as six trials over the next year, as he challenges Biden for the White House in 2024. - Read how Trump allegedly tried to [delete the documents]( footage. Best of Bloomberg Opinion This Week - [Climate Change Is Choking India’s Food Security: David Fickling]( - [NATO Convoys Can Protect Ukraine’s Grain Ships: James Stavridis]( - [The Harsh Truth Is We’re Using More Oil Than Ever: Javier Blas]( - [India Can’t Lead the Global South and Not Feed It: Mihir Sharma]( - [Xi Jinping Might Be Facing the HR Problem From Hell: Minxin Pei]( Presidential Guard Chief Says He’s Niger’s New Leader The detention of Niger President Mohamed Bazoum by his personal guards set off a coup in the West African nation that was condemned by leaders on the continent and Western powers. As Katarina Hoije reports, if successful, it will create a [belt of military-ruled countries]( that runs from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea, most of them friendlier to Russia than they are to the West. - Read our [Quicktake analysis]( on what’s driving coups in West Africa. - Five things [we know]( about Niger’s new military leader Sunak Gambles With Lurch to Right as UK Moderates Flee to Labour UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is gambling that [a shift to the right]( could keep his Conservatives in power. As Alex Wickham writes, he’s risking his reputation for pragmatism because he’s trailing in the polls, facing economic headwinds and seeing businesses and the City of London engage with the main opposition Labour Party. Late Sanchez Surge Leaves Spain Facing Political Gridlock Again A late swing in the final days of Spain’s election campaign allowed Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to deny his right-wing opponents a majority in parliament but leaves the country [facing months of instability]( without a fully functioning government. Sanchez and People’s Party leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo both claimed victory, but it may well require a repeat election later this year before either can take office. - Six years after a failed attempt to declare independence upended Spanish politics, Catalan separatists unexpectedly find themselves [at the center of machinations]( in Madrid following Sunday’s surprise election result. Best of Bloomberg Explainers This Week - [How World Fell Into a Subsidy Race for Climate Goals]( - [Regulate AI? Here’s What That Might Mean in the US]( - [Italy Just Can’t Work Out How to Spend Its Record EU Jackpot]( - [Why Chile’s New Approach to Lithium Matters Globally]( - [Women Workers to Be Hurt More Than Men by AI Wave, McKinsey Says]( Israel in ‘Twilight Zone’ as Investors Fret Over Judicial Law Israel’s new legislation limiting the power of the courts [has investors and lawyers worried](. While the law’s advocates argue it will reduce judicial abuse, opponents say they now fear political abuse, Ethan Bronner and Galit Altstein report. “We’re entering a twilight zone,” said Elah Alkalay, head of corporate responsibility at Tel Aviv’s IBI Investment House. Police use a water cannon against protesters in Jerusalem on Monday. Photographer: Kobi Wolf/Bloomberg India Federal Agency to Probe Sexual Assault of Women in Manipur Investigators in India will probe a [horrifying incident]( of two women being paraded naked and allegedly raped in violence-torn Manipur state, an event that triggered a backlash against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration. Shruti Mahajan and Bibhudatta Pradhan write that the footage of the assault sparked public anger over sexual crimes in the world’s largest democracy. And finally … Twenty-five years ago, to get to school in the morning, Godfrey Molwana would walk 2 miles from his home in Witrandjie, through communal grazing lands for cattle and goats — a rolling expanse of acacia trees and hardy shrubs. But in the past decade, Kimon de Greef writes, chrome mining near the small South African village has [devolved into brutal disorder](. Witrandjie’s leaders are powerless to stop the advance of the machines, and the villagers have grown mistrustful and fearful of one another, with turf wars and gang involvement driving a rise in violence. Godfrey Molwana. Photographer: Tommy Trenchard for Bloomberg Businessweek More from Bloomberg - [Washington Edition]( for exclusive coverage on how the worlds of money and politics intersect in the US capital - [Economics Daily]( for what the changing landscape means for policy makers, investors and you - [Supply Lines]( for daily insights into supply chains and globe trade - [Bw Daily]( for unique perspectives, original reporting and insightful analysis from Businessweek’s renowned journalists - [Green Daily]( for the latest in climate news, zero-emission tech and green finance Explore more newsletters at [Bloomberg.com](. Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com]( for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and subscriber-only insights. 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