• China flexes on Taiwan: The Chinese military announced large-scale drills around Taiwan as it again warned the self-ruled island against seeking formal independence. Taiwan said it had tracked 19 Chinese navy vessels in the waters surrounding the island in a 24-hour period beginning 6 a.m. Monday. Tuesday’s drills come just two weeks after a large-scale exercise in mid-March. – The Associated Press
• Election law challenge dismissed: U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi instructed the Justice Department to dismiss a lawsuit challenging a 2021 election law in Georgia. Republican state lawmakers passed the overhaul after President Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss there, and after Mr. Trump made claims of voter fraud. The lawsuit alleged that the law was meant to deny Black voters equal access to the ballot. It shortened the period for requesting a mailed ballot and led to fewer ballot drop boxes in some metro Atlanta counties. – AP
• Tesla faces widespread protests: Crowds protested Elon Musk’s cuts to U.S. government agencies outside Tesla dealerships throughout the United States and parts of Europe. – AP
  • Related Monitor story: Last month we explored how Mr. Musk’s business interests intertwine with the government he is remaking.
• France fines Apple: France fined Apple $162 million over a privacy feature. Apple’s App Tracking Transparency requires iPhone and iPad apps to ask users’ permission before tracking them to target users with personalized ads. The feature was designed to increase privacy. Critics say it could make it harder for smaller apps to survive. The French Competition Authority ruled that the “way in which it was implemented was neither necessary nor proportionate.” – AP
• Population growth lags in Italy: Italy’s demographic crisis deepened in 2024 as the number of births hit a new record low, emigration accelerated, and the population continued to shrink, national statistics bureau Istat said March 31. Like her predecessors, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has pledged to make the falling birth rate, a decadelong trend, a priority. – Reuters
• Women’s Final Four is set: Three No. 1 seeds will be in the Final Four of the women’s NCAA Tournament. South Carolina will face fellow top seed Texas on Friday in their bid to become the first repeat NCAA basketball champion since UConn’s run of four straight from 2013-16. The tourney’s overall 1 seed, UCLA, will face No. 2 seed UConn. – AP

In Washington, the planned sale of Panama Canal ports to an American-led group is largely cast as a sign of expanding U.S. influence in Central America. But in China, it is seen as a prime battleground in the U.S.-China rivalry. The deal involves 43 ports, which would cut Chinese-owned port operations globally by nearly half, transferring strategic assets to an international consortium led by the American asset manager BlackRock Inc. How far is China willing to go to protect its geopolitical leverage?

The Trump administration says it wants to bring back a “warrior ethos” to the Pentagon. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who saw combat in Iraq as an infantry officer in 2005-2006, argues in his book that Americans “should not fight by rules written by dignified men in mahogany rooms eighty years ago” – referring to the sort of treaties meant to prevent war crimes. Yet rules of engagement for armed conflict can protect troops from having to make complicated ethical decisions amid battles – choices that can set them up for struggles down the line.

During President Donald Trump’s legal cases, experts debated whether it would be fair to deny voters the opportunity to cast ballots for him in 2024. In France, such a scenario is being realized. Far-right leader Marine Le Pen, a favorite to win the presidency in 2027, was barred from running for public office over the next five years, after being found guilty of embezzling European Union funds. She was also sentenced to four years in prison and forced to pay a €100,000 fine.

In the U.S., 4 out of every 10 fourth graders and a third of eighth graders are reading below the basic level of the National Assessment of Educational Progress, dubbed the “nation’s report card.” In West Virginia, volunteers are on a mission to reengage them. “Here we go,” says Casey Willson, holding up a picture book called “Nigel and the Moon.” “Now, this is about what you want to do when you grow up.” Mr. Casey, as the students call him, is among those modeling the idea that building strong readers requires community, and a culture shift.

Bible stories can strike some people as “simple or naive,” but they’re not, says Elaine Pagels, a professor and historian of religion at Princeton University. After decades studying the Bible, reading chapters in their original languages such as Hebrew and Coptic, Dr. Pagels has many questions. “Why do these stories still fascinate me? Why do I still love teaching this?” Her new book, “Miracles and Wonder: The Historical Mystery of Jesus” seeks to answer those questions.

In fall 2022, our contributor Adri Salido photographed domestic workers in Lebanon who were trying to get out of the “kafala,” or sponsor, system. They lived in cramped apartments on the outskirts of Beirut, with as many as 15 women sharing quarters – and developing close friendships. Mariam Sesay, a young woman from Sierra Leone, rode out Hezbollah’s recent war with Israel along with other “kafala” workers, looking for opportunities to help other migrants. “Yes, I’m a victim of the ‘kafala’ system, but I don’t want to see myself as a victim,” she says.

President Donald Trump is clearly worried about the security of the Arctic. Most obviously, he has made numerous controversial statements about the need for the United States to have control over Greenland. Similar comments about Canada bespeak his underlying concern: Neither Greenland nor Canada is being vigilant enough about the threats facing them.

Those threats are widely acknowledged. As a warming world makes the Arctic more navigable, Russia and China are seeking to take advantage. The Trump administration underlined its seriousness by sending Vice President JD Vance to an American air base in Greenland last week.

In a different context, such demands for accountability are already driving change. In February, Mr. Vance made a similar trip to Europe, delivering rebukes. Europe has since taken dramatic steps to reimagine its security structure and free itself from dependence on the U.S.

Might the same happen in Greenland and Canada? Early signs suggest so. But must holding such places more accountable for security come at the cost of goodwill and shared purpose? A deeper look at the current situation offers a different picture. 

In laying out the keys to making the top of the world safe, the Ted Stevens Center for Arctic Security Studies emphasizes one quality: cooperation. “The underlying premise of security cooperation is that the United States is stronger by using security cooperation to obtain its strategic objectives.”

In particular, its 2023 report highlights the relationship between the U.S. and Canada. From the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) to other cooperative mechanisms like the Permanent Joint Board on Defense, “The US-Canada relationship is considered unique in foreign policy and security circles in terms of both its depth and breadth,” the report adds.

With Mr. Trump’s rhetoric and his tariffs on Canadian goods, that relationship has frayed politically. But the American and Canadian armed forces continue to rely on each other. Canada’s top general, Jennie Carignan, said in February that “Militarily, we’re not there at all.”

The mayor of North Bay, Ontario, site of a key NORAD facility, told reporters in March he sees no drop in the need for cooperation. “I believe that it’s something that there is a continued investment for, that we will see support from our Canadian government, we will see support from the American government.”

In his Greenland trip, Mr. Vance said Americans respect the self-determination of Greenlanders, and “We do not think military force is ever going to be necessary.” Finding the right balance between accountability and cooperation is essential to keeping the Arctic safe.