Squiz Today – 23 April 2024

The Squiz 

Hot on the heels of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit, PM Anthony Albanese is in Papua New Guinea. It coincides with ANZAC Day on Thursday, and to commemorate the day, Albanese’s hiking part of the Kokoda Track in the north of the country today and tomorrow. He’s not the first Aussie politician to do so, but he will be the first sitting PM… And he’ll have some company – PNG’s PM James Marape is set to join him for parts of the walk.

Sounds like a tough way to have a meeting…

Yep, and there’s plenty of business for the 2 leaders to discuss. Albanese’s visit comes off the back of a big security deal signed between Oz and PNG in December, and reports say Albanese wants to keep talking about strengthening our relationship with PNG and other neighbours in the Indo-Pacific. PNG – the largest Pacific Island country with a population of more than 9 million – is a good place to do that, given our long history. Just a reminder: PNG was an Australian territory from the end of WWI until 1975 when it became a sovereign nation… But in recent years, China’s taken an interest in PNG as it looks to assert itself in the region, and that’s something Oz and our allies want to head off at the pass. Cue lots of diplomatic meetings – including Wang’s weekend visit…

How did that go?

It was “very positive”, according to PNG’s Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko. The pair hashed out the details of several new agreements, including increased trade and communication, and $1.7 million in disaster relief funding. For Wang’s part, he made it clear that Beijing isn’t happy about AUKUS and its focus on security in the Indo-Pacific region… He said it creates “division” and that Pacific Island countries aren’t “the backyard of any major country”. He also urged nations to butt out of their partnerships (and yes we might be paraphrasing there…). One Pacific Island nation China has built a significant partnership with is the Solomon Islands. The results from its general election are still being counted, but pro-China PM Manasseh Sogavare has held onto his seat…

Trump makes history

Donald Trump’s “hush-money” trial has begun in New York, in what is the first-ever criminal prosecution of an American president. In his opening statement, Prosecutor Matthew Colangelo told the jury the case is “about a criminal conspiracy and a cover-up” designed to “influence the presidential election.” Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of fraud relating to US$130,000 paid to adult film star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 US election. Trump’s lawyer Todd Blanche argued the payment to Daniels, made by Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen, was “perfectly legal”. “Spoiler alert. There’s nothing wrong with trying to influence an election. It’s called democracy”, he said. The first witness, David Pecker, ex-publisher of The National Enquirer, is expected to tell the court tomorrow about “catch-and-kill” schemes in which he helped Trump quash negative press. The trial is set to last 6 weeks.

Rumbling the rioters

Over a week since Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was allegedly stabbed by a 16yo boy in a terrorist attack in Sydney, NSW Police have released images of 12 men wanted over the riot outside Christ The Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley. Strike Force Dribs is dedicated to finding those responsible for the violence that left 26 officers injured. Three men have already been charged, but police say around 50 people in the group of 2,000 had the intention “to start problems” and “someone in the community knows who they are.” Last night, Oz’s e-safety commissioner won a 2-day legal injunction against social media platform X, forcing it to hide all graphic content relating to the Wakeley attack. And while we’re talking law and order, Steve Gollschewski has been named Queensland’s new police commissioner following Katarina Carroll’s resignation in February. 

Show me the surplus

Treasurer Jim Chalmers reckons the government will be back in the black when the Budget is handed down next month – despite the global economy looking pretty shaky. Chalmers has returned from meetings with counterparts in Washington and says he’s on track to record a second surplus after ending last financial year with $22 billion in the nation’s bank account – “We feel like the first surplus last year, the first in 15 years, was an important way to put downward pressure on inflation so our objective is still a second.” But he’s warned events in the Middle East, as well as slower growth in China and Japan, could dampen the economy. And you can bet he’ll keep an eye on quarterly inflation data due on Wednesday… The markets expect it will show a dip from an annual rate of 4.1% to 3.4%, just below the RBA’s 3.5% forecast.

Olyroos out…

It’s a phrase that (if you’re hip and happenin’ like us…) could sound like a mic drop, but it was hearts that dropped yesterday as the Olyroos – the Aussie men’s under-23yo team – failed to score in their Asian Cup match against hosts Qatar. That means they have not qualified for the Paris Olympics… The game ended in a disappointing 0-0 draw, but even if they had won, Indonesia’s 4-1 victory over Jordan would still have stopped them from getting out of the group stage. All hope for football gold now rests on the Matildas’ shoulders – but whatever happens in Paris, women’s soccer will remain in vogue. Football Australia has revealed the proposed host states for the Women’s 2026 Asian Cup – NSW, Queensland and Western Oz. It’s not a done deal that Oz will host the event, but as the sole bidder, you’d have to be feeling confident…

The GPS knows what it’s doing

In case you’re not already having enough arguments with a friend/loved one in the car as you try to navigate using a questionable phone GPS, Google Maps is introducing a new option for lost drivers – the most fuel-efficient route. Artificial intelligence will identify directions that use the least energy, even if they take more time. The tech giant announced the new method yesterday to coincide with Earth Day, but it doesn’t end there… In a GPS-first, users will be ‘politely pestered’ to get out of their cars and use public transport in order to be truly green. Google Maps’ Director Andrew Foster says the tool is designed to encourage drivers to make more sustainable transport choices. That sounds great as long as it doesn’t lead to more of this… 

A new movie called The Apprentice will premiere at the Cannes Film Festival next month, telling the story of how former President Donald Trump got his start in the real estate business. Starring Succession’s Jeremy Strong, we’re curious…

Never get between an Italian and their right to some late-night gelato – that’s a lesson Milan’s leaders are learning the hard way after they tried to ban sales of the frozen treat after midnight. The ban was designed to cut down on the city’s “wild nightlife”…

Hollywood legend Kevin Bacon has returned to Payson High School in Utah where his hit movie Footloose was filmed over 40 years ago. He spoke at the school’s last prom as it’s set for demolition next year – but no word on whether he recreated his illegally good dance routine…

9.00am (AEST) – PM Anthony Albanese to walk part of the Kokoda Track with his PNG counterpart James Marape as part of ANZAC commemorations

12.30pm (AEST) – Wally Lewis AM will address the National Press Club on his experiences of living with probable chronic traumatic encephalopathy – Canberra

9.00pm (AEST) – Democratic and Republican presidential primaries in Pennsylvania

ABS Data Release – Tax revenue, Government Finance Stats 22/23

St George’s Day – England

UN English Language Day 

UN Spanish Language Day

World Book and Copyright Day 

German Beer Day

World Table Tennis Day 

Birthdays for John Oliver (1977), Gigi Hadid (1995), Dev Patel (1990), and Prince Louis of Cambridge (2019)

Anniversary of:

• the crowning of Queen Anne at Westminster Abbey (1702)
• the deaths of Shakespeare (1616), William Wordsworth (1850) and Boris Yeltsin (2007)
• the AIDS virus being identified as HTLV-III (acquired immune deficiency syndrome) (1984)
• the world’s first malaria vaccine being piloted in Malawi by the WHO (2019)