Good morning, this is Eleanor Ainge Roy bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Wednesday 21 June.
Top stories
Australia has radically underestimated the impact of climate change in the Asia Pacific, a new report charges. As the Senate launches an inquiry into the national security ramifications of climate change, Disaster Alley forecasts climate change could potentially displace tens of millions from swamped cities, drive fragile states to failure, cause intractable political instability and spark military conflict, resulting in a major security threat for Australia that has been overlooked.
Ian Dunlop, the report’s co-author, said the global nature of the climate change challenge should force countries to cooperate. “Climate change has to become seen as a reason for far greater levels of global cooperation than we’ve seen before. If we don’t see it that way, then we’re going to be in big trouble. This problem is bigger than any of us, it’s bigger than any nation state, any political party. We’re going to be steamrolled by this stuff unless we take serious action now.”
Australia has suspended all air missions over Syria, amid growing tension between the US and Russia. Late on Tuesday the Australian defence force said all strike operations in Syria would temporarily cease as a “precautionary measure”, after Russia threatened to shoot down coalition planes that flew west of the Euphrates river. Australia has six fighter jets based in the United Arab Emirates. Strike missions in Iraq would continue, the defence force told the ABC. In the second such incident in 12 days US forces in southern Syria have shot down an Iranian-made armed drone, a further sign that Washington and Tehran’s agendas are colliding along the Syrian-Iraqi desert frontier. On Monday Russia announced that it had suspended a military hotline with US forces, though the US insisted the two countries were continuing talks to defuse the situation.
Faith in the US “acting responsibly” has plummeted among Australians but the rise of China is still viewed as a potential military threat by many, the 2017 Lowy poll has found. The survey of Australian attitudes found Australians had never felt less safe in the world, with rising concerns about terrorism, climate change, cyberattacks and a nuclear-armed North Korea.
Israel has begun building its first new settlement in 25 years. The settlement known as Amichai is being built to house about 300 hardline residents of the illegal West Bank Jewish outpost of Amona. The move comes a day before Donald Trump’s son-in-law and envoy, Jared Kushner, flies in with the purported aim of kickstarting stalled peace talks.
The attempt by British prime minister Theresa May to agree a deal with the Northern Ireland DUP party to support a her Conservative government is in doubt. Senior DUP figures revealed the talks “haven’t proceeded the way we would have expected”. The Tories want a “confidence and supply” arrangement with the DUP that would guarantee them its support in confidence motions and key budget votes. But the DUP has said it “can’t be taken for granted”.
Sport
Johnathan Thurston returns for Queensland in tonight’s huge State of Origin Game II in Sydney and, despite hints of desperation in the Maroons’ play during the series opener, that’s enough to provide New South Wales with cause for concern, writes Sam Perry. Join Paul Connolly from 7.30pm AEST for live coverage of the game at ANZ Stadium with Guardian Australia’s liveblog. Kick-off is shortly after 8pm.
The world No 1 British tennis star Andy Murray has been beaten by 23-year-old Australian Jordan Thompson, who is ranked 90th in the world. The two met in the first round of the Aegon Championships at Queens, and Thompson beat Murray 7-6 (7-4), 6-2.
Thinking time
Could you cross a busy city street in the dark? A new immersive exhibition opening this month, Dialogue in the Dark, allows sighted attendees to experience a stroll around “Melbourne” accompanied by blind and low-vision guides, in total darkness. Clem Bastow found the experience unsettling, and enlightening. “My casual skim along the handrail becomes a white-knuckle grip as the light slowly disappears behind me,” she writes.
Sons born to older fathers score higher on the “geek index”, UK researchers have discovered. The study found the sons of older fathers score higher on IQ tests, have more intense focus on their interests and are more aloof, and that these geeky children may do particularly well in technical subjects at high school. The results came out of a study involving nearly 8,000 British twins. The lead researcher, Magdalena Janecka, said: “If you look at who does well in life right now, it’s geeks.”
Ten years on from the Northern Territory intervention, Melinda Hinkson questions what its legacy will be. “What is most strikingly displaced in its aftermath is any vision of Aboriginal communities as places that sustain distinctive, valued ways of life and where futures might be optimistically imagined.”
What’s he done now?
On Monday Donald Trump hosted the president of Panama, Juan Carlos Varela, in the White House. While speaking to the media, Trump appeared to take credit for a rather significant construction project, saying: “The Panama Canal is doing quite well, we did a good job building it, right?”
“Yep,” replied Varela, grinning from ear to ear. “One hundred years ago.”
Seth Meyers has asked Trump to wear a large bandage on his head, so world leaders show him slack over his iffy grasp of history.
Media roundup
Fairfax Media reports that Macquarie Group faces a major class action over allegations some of its investment advisers artificially inflated the price of a small Brazilian mining company that turned out to be a worthless patch of jungle. The union representing workers at Perth Mint are furious about a proposed plan to ban female workers from wearing underwire bras to work, the West Australian reports. The ABC reports that one of Australia’s biggest superfunds, Hesta, is appealing to the federal government to change legislation to allow access to superannuation on compassionate grounds, such as women escaping abusive relationships. The Economist has a long read on a two-year experiment under way in Finland testing the benefits or otherwise of granting its citizens an unconditional basic income.
Coming up
It will be a busy day in Canberra as the Greens weigh up Malcolm Turnbull’s Gonski 2.0 school funding deal.
Frits Van Beelan, an Adelaide man found guilty of murdering teenager Deborah Leach 45 years ago, will make a last-ditch bid to have his conviction overturned.
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