The Evening: Israel UAE Formalize Ties, Senate Adjourned, Unbroken Chain and More

Israel and UAE Establish Formal Diplomatic Ties

Israel and the United Arab Emirates moved today to establish formal diplomatic ties after Israel agreed to suspend a plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank, in a dramatic U.S.-backed shift that signaled Israel’s warming ties with Gulf Arab states, as the WSJ reports.

Highest Single-Day Virus Death Toll of Month

Officials across the United States reported at least 1,470 deaths on Wednesday, the highest single-day total yet in August, as the NYT reports.

Senate Adjourned

With talks on a new coronavirus relief bill essentially dead, the Senate today adjourned through Labor Day. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said senators would be called back to vote in the event of a breakthrough on the matter, as the Washington Post reports.

Climate Check

"Set the carbon price too high and you splinter the world trading system—one world becomes low carbon, another becomes high carbon, with limited trade between them. Set the price too low and it becomes a modest cost that is absorbed into final prices without much decarbonization impact," writes CSIS's Nikos Tsafos about Europe's proposed carbon border adjustment mechanism.

CSIS Executive Education

Rolling applications are still open for the CSIS and Syracuse University’s joint Executive Master’s in International Relations, a first-of-its-kind degree allowing working professionals in the nation’s capital to benefit from the strengths of the #1 graduate school in public affairs and the #1 think tank in the United States.

Video Shorts

Check out CSIS’s new series of video shorts: “Testify,” "What's Happening," "Preview," and “High Resolution.” And don’t forget to subscribe to the CSIS YouTube Channel!

In That Number

$30 Billion

The cost of rebuilding Beirut is estimated at up to $30 billion, money Lebanon does not have.

Source: Reuters

Critical Quote

“Along with the United States, Israel and the United Arab Emirates share a similar outlook regarding the threats and opportunities in the region, as well as a shared commitment to promoting stability through diplomatic engagement, increased economic integration, and closer security coordination. Today’s agreement will lead to better lives for the peoples of the United Arab Emirates, Israel, and the region.”

— Joint Statement of the United States, the State of Israel, and the United Arab Emirates

iDeas Lab

Since 2014, China has substantially expanded its ability to monitor and project power throughout the South China Sea. These include new radar and communications arrays, airstrips and hangars to accommodate combat aircraft, and deployments of mobile surface-to-air and anti-ship cruise missile systems. An updated map from CSIS's Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative highlights how these capabilities overlap.

The Andreas C. Dracopoulos iDeas Lab at CSIS enhances our research with the latest in cutting-edge web technologies, design, and multimedia.

Optics

(Photo credit: Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images.) President Donald Trump speaks with leaders of Israel and UAE in the Oval Office today.

Recommended Reading

"The Scowcroft Model," by former defense secretary Robert Gates for Foreign Affairs.

This Town Tomorrow

Tomorrow, at 10:00 a.m., The United States Institute of Peace and the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime will hold a virtual discussion on drug trafficking in North Africa.

And, at 1:00 p.m., The Arab Studies Institute is holding a webinar exploring Bashar al-Assad's 20 years in power.

Video

CSIS today hosted Tae Young-ho, a current member of the National Assembly of South Korea, to discuss North Korea, inter-Korea relations, and more. Watch the video here.

Podcasts

Adena Friedman, president and CEO joins The Reopening to discuss the central role of capital markets in economic recovery, the power of technology, and how companies that do the right thing deliver superior returns.

Listen on Spotify & Apple Podcasts.

Smiles

I love that you all loved the Billy Strings clip yesterday of “Dire Wolf.” So where do all these young musicians pick up the Grateful Dead’s music from and then turn it into something new and make it their own? Well, in many cases they tapped the source directly. Here’s evidence. Check out Phil Lesh and Bob Weir performing with “Further,” the band they put together with some of the best young musicians in the business between 2009-14. This iteration features Jeff Chimenti on piano, Joe Russo (of JRAD) on drums, and Jon Kadlecik on guitar.