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Manuel Valls, Matteo Renzi, ‘Brexit’: Your Tuesday Briefing Manuel Valls, Matteo Renzi, ‘Brexit’: Your Tuesday Briefing
(35 minutes later)
Good morning.Good morning.
Here’s what you need to know:Here’s what you need to know:
• Manuel Valls, the French prime minister, said he would step down and run in primary contests to be the Socialist candidate in presidential elections next year.• Manuel Valls, the French prime minister, said he would step down and run in primary contests to be the Socialist candidate in presidential elections next year.
But it is unclear how far he will get. More than a dozen leftist candidates are running, and polls suggest a likely runoff between François Fillon, the conservative candidate, and Marine Le Pen, the leader of the National Front.But it is unclear how far he will get. More than a dozen leftist candidates are running, and polls suggest a likely runoff between François Fillon, the conservative candidate, and Marine Le Pen, the leader of the National Front.
Here’s a look at how Ms. Le Pen’s party differs from other anti-establishment parties in Europe.Here’s a look at how Ms. Le Pen’s party differs from other anti-establishment parties in Europe.
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• Italy’s president, Sergio Mattarella, asked Prime Minister Matteo Renzi to delay stepping down until Parliament passes a budget for 2017 this month.• Italy’s president, Sergio Mattarella, asked Prime Minister Matteo Renzi to delay stepping down until Parliament passes a budget for 2017 this month.
Mr. Mattarella will then call early elections or seek the formation of a caretaker government.Mr. Mattarella will then call early elections or seek the formation of a caretaker government.
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• Donald J. Trump is meeting with a broadened range of candidates for secretary of state, including John R. Bolton, an ambassador to the United Nations under President George W. Bush.• Donald J. Trump is meeting with a broadened range of candidates for secretary of state, including John R. Bolton, an ambassador to the United Nations under President George W. Bush.
Top NATO officials begin two days of meetings today in Brussels, their last before Mr. Trump, who has expressed ambivalence about the organization, takes office.Top NATO officials begin two days of meetings today in Brussels, their last before Mr. Trump, who has expressed ambivalence about the organization, takes office.
Here’s the latest on the transition, including former Vice President Al Gore’s meeting with Mr. Trump and an effort by hundreds of scientists to persuade Mr. Trump that human-caused climate change is real. Here’s the latest on the transition, including the president-elect’s meeting with former Vice President Al Gore, above, and an effort by hundreds of scientists to persuade Mr. Trump that human-caused climate change is real.
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• Rebels who have lost much of their grip in the Syrian city of Aleppo must withdraw completely or be killed as “terrorists,” said Russia’s foreign minister, Sergey V. Lavrov.• Rebels who have lost much of their grip in the Syrian city of Aleppo must withdraw completely or be killed as “terrorists,” said Russia’s foreign minister, Sergey V. Lavrov.
He also said that the American secretary of state, John Kerry, had already submitted a proposal for the routes and timing of the fighters’ departure, and that Russia and the United States would open talks in Geneva almost immediately.He also said that the American secretary of state, John Kerry, had already submitted a proposal for the routes and timing of the fighters’ departure, and that Russia and the United States would open talks in Geneva almost immediately.
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• “We must never repeat the horror of war.”• “We must never repeat the horror of war.”
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s announcement that he would visit Pearl Harbor, the Hawaiian naval base Japan attacked in World War II, effectively reciprocates President Obama’s trip in May to the Japanese city of Hiroshima, where the U.S. dropped a nuclear bomb to end the war.Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s announcement that he would visit Pearl Harbor, the Hawaiian naval base Japan attacked in World War II, effectively reciprocates President Obama’s trip in May to the Japanese city of Hiroshima, where the U.S. dropped a nuclear bomb to end the war.
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• Europe’s political disruptions have created new potential for volatility, but in the short term, markets are up. Oil rose to its highest level since July 2015, and the Dow Jones industrial average reached a record high.• Europe’s political disruptions have created new potential for volatility, but in the short term, markets are up. Oil rose to its highest level since July 2015, and the Dow Jones industrial average reached a record high.
The most immediate concern for investors in Italy now is probably the banking system.The most immediate concern for investors in Italy now is probably the banking system.
• Uber bought an artificial intelligence company and set up an A.I. research lab in an effort to shape how computers behind self-driving vehicles think.• Uber bought an artificial intelligence company and set up an A.I. research lab in an effort to shape how computers behind self-driving vehicles think.
• Tech giants, including Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Twitter, plan to create a shared database of terrorist content to help curb its flow across the web.• Tech giants, including Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Twitter, plan to create a shared database of terrorist content to help curb its flow across the web.
• Michel Barnier, the European Union’s chief negotiator on Britain’s departure from the bloc, will hold his first news conference today.• Michel Barnier, the European Union’s chief negotiator on Britain’s departure from the bloc, will hold his first news conference today.
• Angela Merkel’s party, the Christian Democratic Union, will confirm its leadership at a conference today before elections next year. Observers will parse the percentage of votes Ms. Merkel, the German chancellor, receives as an indicator of her popularity among conservatives. [Politico]• Angela Merkel’s party, the Christian Democratic Union, will confirm its leadership at a conference today before elections next year. Observers will parse the percentage of votes Ms. Merkel, the German chancellor, receives as an indicator of her popularity among conservatives. [Politico]
• California lawmakers are moving to enact legislation to protect undocumented immigrants from deportation. [The New York Times]• California lawmakers are moving to enact legislation to protect undocumented immigrants from deportation. [The New York Times]
• A 27-year-old man was arraigned in Washington, D.C., for firing an assaultlike AR-15 rifle inside a pizzeria. He claimed to be investigating child-trafficking claims he saw on fake news reports online. [The New York Times] • A 28-year-old man was arraigned in Washington, D.C., for firing an assaultlike AR-15 rifle inside a pizzeria. He claimed to be investigating child-trafficking claims he saw on fake news reports online. [The New York Times]
• A commander of the Lord’s Resistance Army, one of central Africa’s most violent guerrilla groups, is facing 70 charges of war crimes, including using child soldiers and keeping sex slaves, at the International Criminal Court. [IRIN News]• A commander of the Lord’s Resistance Army, one of central Africa’s most violent guerrilla groups, is facing 70 charges of war crimes, including using child soldiers and keeping sex slaves, at the International Criminal Court. [IRIN News]
• In Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev won 89 percent of the votes in an election deeply criticized by observers, becoming the country’s second permanent president since independence. [The New York Times]• In Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev won 89 percent of the votes in an election deeply criticized by observers, becoming the country’s second permanent president since independence. [The New York Times]
• Poland’s Supreme Court will examine a bid to extradite Roman Polanski, the filmmaker, to the United States.• Poland’s Supreme Court will examine a bid to extradite Roman Polanski, the filmmaker, to the United States.
• The English village of Kidlington has become a popular stop for Chinese tourists who snap photographs of its nondescript homes, bushes and streets, to the bafflement of residents. [The New York Times]• The English village of Kidlington has become a popular stop for Chinese tourists who snap photographs of its nondescript homes, bushes and streets, to the bafflement of residents. [The New York Times]
• If you’re in Paris, take the Métro. It’s free today, and only vehicles with even-numbered license plates will be allowed to use the roads. [Associated Press]• If you’re in Paris, take the Métro. It’s free today, and only vehicles with even-numbered license plates will be allowed to use the roads. [Associated Press]
• Bob Dylan sent the Nobel Prize committee a speech to be read on his behalf when he is awarded the literature prize in Stockholm on Saturday.• Bob Dylan sent the Nobel Prize committee a speech to be read on his behalf when he is awarded the literature prize in Stockholm on Saturday.
• Chapecoense, the Brazilian soccer club that lost most of its players and coaching staff in an airplane crash last week, has been awarded the Copa Sudamericana championship.• Chapecoense, the Brazilian soccer club that lost most of its players and coaching staff in an airplane crash last week, has been awarded the Copa Sudamericana championship.
• Helen Marten, a multimedia artist who makes puzzling, whimsical installations from everyday materials, won the Turner Prize, Britain’s top award for contemporary art.• Helen Marten, a multimedia artist who makes puzzling, whimsical installations from everyday materials, won the Turner Prize, Britain’s top award for contemporary art.
• The number of Americans who smoke has dropped below 40 million for the first time since record-keeping began 50 years ago.• The number of Americans who smoke has dropped below 40 million for the first time since record-keeping began 50 years ago.
• For some men, finding and giving the right Christmas gifts is a dreaded, awkward annual ritual. If you’re one of them, let us help you with our gift guide.• For some men, finding and giving the right Christmas gifts is a dreaded, awkward annual ritual. If you’re one of them, let us help you with our gift guide.
• And the mystery man who stole a bucket filled with 86 pounds of scrap gold (worth $1.6 million) from an armored truck in Manhattan two months ago has still not been identified, despite security video of him waddling across town.• And the mystery man who stole a bucket filled with 86 pounds of scrap gold (worth $1.6 million) from an armored truck in Manhattan two months ago has still not been identified, despite security video of him waddling across town.
Children aren’t the only fans of St. Nicholas, that is, Santa Claus. He’s a hit with pawnbrokers, too.Children aren’t the only fans of St. Nicholas, that is, Santa Claus. He’s a hit with pawnbrokers, too.
His feast day is celebrated today across Europe with reminders of his legend of leaving gold coins in shoes for boys and girls. He’s the pawnbrokers’ patron saint year-round.His feast day is celebrated today across Europe with reminders of his legend of leaving gold coins in shoes for boys and girls. He’s the pawnbrokers’ patron saint year-round.
The business of offering quick cash for personal items has been criticized for exploiting the poor. But some say the spheres that hang outside pawn shops are meant to symbolize St. Nick’s generosity, evoking the bags of gold he is said to have used to save three sisters from being sold into slavery.The business of offering quick cash for personal items has been criticized for exploiting the poor. But some say the spheres that hang outside pawn shops are meant to symbolize St. Nick’s generosity, evoking the bags of gold he is said to have used to save three sisters from being sold into slavery.
Another theory is that the spheres originated with the Medicis, the powerful Italian bankers who sponsored artists during the Renaissance. Golden circles appear on their family crest.Another theory is that the spheres originated with the Medicis, the powerful Italian bankers who sponsored artists during the Renaissance. Golden circles appear on their family crest.
That may explain how New York City’s power brokers came to admire St. Nick.That may explain how New York City’s power brokers came to admire St. Nick.
“The religion the world wants today,” a guest at a banquet devoted to the saint said in 1900, “is a religion like that of St. Nicholas, that lays the hands of brotherly love upon the crying needs of our helpless brethren.”“The religion the world wants today,” a guest at a banquet devoted to the saint said in 1900, “is a religion like that of St. Nicholas, that lays the hands of brotherly love upon the crying needs of our helpless brethren.”
Kenneth R. Rosen contributed reporting.Kenneth R. Rosen contributed reporting.
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Your Morning Briefing is published weekday mornings.Your Morning Briefing is published weekday mornings.
What would you like to see here? Contact us at europebriefing@nytimes.com.What would you like to see here? Contact us at europebriefing@nytimes.com.