Good morning, readers!

The G20 summit in India is looming, and the world leaders are scrambling to polish their agendas.

Today’s stories spill the beans on some of these hidden motives.

Today’s geopolitics hotspots:

Erdogan on restoring the grain deal

This is what President Erdogan said after his meeting with Putin in Sochi, Russia on Monday.

Are we seeing a glimmer of hope?

🇷🇺 Why is Erdogan in Russia?

As reported yesterday, Turkish President Erdogan and Russian President Putin met to discuss the Black Sea grain deal that Russia threw out in July.

• The deal was meant to help ease the global food crisis by allowing Ukraine to export its grain through the Black Sea.

• Erdogan hoped to persuade Putin to return to the deal, which was brokered by the UN and Turkey last year.

🫵🏻 Putin’s demands.

• Main demand: Reconnect the Russian Agricultural Bank to the SWIFT international payments system, which was severed by the EU last year.

• Putin said he would consider reviving the deal if the West fulfills its part of another agreement that was signed along with the deal.

• This involved the UN helping Russia with its own food and fertilizer exports, which faced Western sanctions.

✍🏻 The outcome.

• Erdogan and Putin discussed Moscow's proposal for 1 million tons of Russian grain at a reduced price for Turkey. The grain would then be processed and distributed to needy countries with financial assistance.

• Natural gas supply, a major energy partnership, was also on the agenda.

• No concrete decisions were announced regarding the grain deal.

🌟 Today’s gem

Quick updates

🇸🇪 Sweden:

Sweden’s third largest city, Malmö, burns.

Anti-Islam activist sparked a violent riot in an immigrant neighborhood after torching a Quran. Police were pelted with rocks and cars were set on fire.

🇬🇦 Gabon:

Meet the new boss.

Gabon’s military leader Brice Nguema has been sworn in as the interim president after a coup ended the Bongo family's 55-year reign. He promises free and transparent elections, but no date is set.

🇨🇳 China:

Xi snubbing India, or preferring BRICS?

China’s foreign ministry revealed on Monday that Xi Jinping will skip the upcoming G20 summit in India, marking his first absence since 2008. Premier Li Qiang will lead the delegation instead—much to the disappointment of President Biden.

🇫🇷 France:

French schools’ abayas ban in effect.

Monday marked the first day of the controversial abaya ban coming into force without major incidents. Despite some students arriving wearing an abaya, most of them agreed to comply. But some may require further persuasion through “educational approaches.”

The French government stands firm on its stance that the abaya contradicts educational secularism, while critics argue it’s a blow to civil liberties.