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Welcome to Balance of Power, bringing you the latest in global politics. If you havenât yet, sign up [here](. New from Bloomberg: [Get the Year of Elections newsletter]( on the votes that matter to markets, business and policy, delivered periodically throughout the year. A much-feared warlord who goes by the nickname âBarbecueâ has arguably become the most powerful man in Haiti as the Caribbean island [succumbs to lawlessness and violent gangs]( take over. Itâs been a tragedy unfolding in slow-motion 700 miles from Florida. No one can claim to be surprised. The United Nations has been issuing warnings about the poorest country in the Americas for years, and not even powerful allies like the US and Canada have been able to successfully engage with what amounts to a failed state in their region. The situation is so bad that even after months of careful negotiations, Kenya has put the deployment of 1,000 police officers on hold. Haiti was already descending all-too-rapidly into chaos. This week, 74-year-old Prime Minister [Ariel Henry finally stepped down](.
WATCH: Prime Minister Ariel Henry announces his resignation on Monday in Puerto Rico. Source: Bloomberg The France-educated neurologist wasnât seen as credible. He took over after his predecessorâs assassination and never held elections â becoming just the latest in a series of doomed leaders. What could change the calculus? Immigration is a trigger issue in US elections and itâs a drum Donald Trump â who in 2016 ran on a campaign to âbuild a wallâ â is beating again. He and President Joe Biden showed up on the same day last month at the US border with Mexico, through which many Haitian migrants try to pass. Haitiâs neighbors happen to be popular tourist destinations for many Americans and Haitian migration to the US is surging, just as neighbors like Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Bahamas and Turks and Caicos â all playgrounds for the rich and powerful â are fortifying their borders. In office, Trump is alleged to have insultingly referred to Haiti and African nations as âshithole countries.â Those words will be remembered should he return to the White House and the situation in Haiti continues to spiral in a way Washington can no longer afford to ignore. â [Augusta Saraiva]( Jimmy âBarbecueâ Cherizier in Port-au-Prince on March 5. Photographer: Clarens Siffroy/AFP/Getty Images Global Must Reads Trump clinched the Republican nomination in [a stunning political comeback]( to face Biden in November in whatâs poised to be the longest and costliest US general election in recent memory. If elected, he has vowed to root out the so-called âdeep stateâ of civil servants, crack down on illegal immigration, enact protectionist trade policies and curtail the USâs role in the world. Ukraine unleashed a fresh wave of drone attacks on Russia, including against Rosneftâs largest oil refinery, that President Vladimir Putin claimed were part of attempts to disrupt this weekâs presidential election. Putin said in an interview to state media today that Russia would demand [security guarantees]( to consider talks to end the war and reiterated that ârealities on the groundâ should be the basis of any negotiations. Chinese state media is touting President Xi Jinping as a market-friendly leader on a par with Deng Xiaoping, in an apparent bid to dispel skepticism over the countryâs growth outlook. The nearly 6,000-word article, published by state news agency Xinhua in English, proclaimed Xi as [âanother outstanding reformerâ]( after Deng, who spearheaded Chinaâs opening up in the late 20th century and transformed it into an economic powerhouse. The European Unionâs parliament today will vote on the AI Act, the most comprehensive guardrails on the [fast-developing world of artificial intelligence](. Barring action by the US, the legislation could set the tone for how AI is governed in the Western world. Some companies worry the law goes too far, while digital watchdogs say it doesnât go far enough. Colombian President Gustavo Petro faces a major setback in his governmentâs plans to overhaul the welfare state as a majority of lawmakers on a senate committee say theyâll vote to shelve his health-care bill. If the reform is killed, it [would mark a serious defeat]( for Petroâs bid to transform the nationâs economic model by giving the public sector a greater role in health and pension provision. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he will travel to Berlin on Friday [to discuss aid for Ukraine]( with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz following talks with Biden at the White House yesterday. Olaf Scholzâs top coalition partners in the Greens and Free Democrats are pushing the German chancellor to drop his opposition to [supplying long-range Taurus cruise missiles]( to Ukraine. Thailandâs prime minister, Srettha Thavisin, will [relinquish his role as finance minister](, a local newspaper reported, in a change that may ease tension with the central bank over monetary policy. Washington Dispatch House Republicans will gather at the Greenbrier resort in West Virginia today to regroup after months of internal strife and prepare to defend their slender majority in the November elections. That majority is about to become even narrower. Representative Ken Buck of Colorado said yesterday [he would leave Congress]( at the end of next week. Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters that Buckâs announcement had taken him by surprise. On its website, the Greenbrier calls itself âa sanctuary in turbulent times.â Johnson and his colleagues have experienced plenty of turbulence, with disagreements over spending and whether to risk a government shutdown to satisfy demands by the partyâs right flank. At the same time, the question of assistance to Ukraine remains unresolved, and Congress faces another budget deadline on March 22. The Greenbrier has a long association with politicians of both parties, and even has a bunker built during the Cold War to accommodate both houses of Congress in the event of a crisis. The resort is now owned by a politician, Governor Jim Justice, a Democrat turned Republican whoâs running for the Senate. One thing to watch today: The House plans a vote that would force the Chinese owners of TikTok to sell the popular video-sharing platform. [Sign up for the Washington Edition newsletter]( for more from the US capital and watch Balance of Power at 5pm ET weekdays on Bloomberg Television. Chart of the Day The number of vessels sailing around the southern tip of Africa is up 85% from the first half of December as attacks by Yemenâs Houthi rebels [force ships to sail thousands of miles]( further than normal. That coincides with a 70% decline in the number of ships arriving in the Gulf of Aden to transit the Red Sea, according to Steve Gordon, managing director of Clarksons Research, a unit of the worldâs largest shipbroker. And Finally Japanese startup Space Oneâs Kairos rocket [exploded in flames]( just seconds after taking off, a major setback in efforts to join a booming market for commercial space launches. A self-destruct order was sent to the vessel shortly after launch and live footage showed a plume of smoke surrounding the fiery wreckage. Kairos, which in ancient Greek means âthe right moment,â was carrying a government satellite.
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