It was a big week for news about “brand positioning” by several nations. There was another North Korean missile launch and some large-scale Russian war-gaming. 

It wasn’t all belligerence and force projection, although a lot of it did involve flexing. India, with Japan’s help, got going on a bullet-train project that’s partly a hedge by both powers against China’s rising clout. Norway, an oil-and-gas giant, reelected a Conservative prime minister even though many saw Greens making a credible challenge, reflecting an electorate conflicted about climate change.

Most often, defining moves come in layers amid cultural reflection. Germany, which has a woman as chancellor but has, by most accounts, lagged on equality for women, is pressing big companies to add women to their boards. Australia is finding its lawmaking process a little klugy as it decides whether to legalize same-sex marriage, as Mark Sappenfield wrote on Monday. 

In the United States, at the citizen level, it’s been a period of helpfulness and hanging tough. But in the political sphere, volatility seems to cloud intent. How much is by design? What’s wholly uncalculated? Which deals are real?

And what does the US project to the world?

Now, to our five stories for your Friday night.