| Past as prologue? | When Biden became vice president in 2009, the U.S. was in economic turmoil caused by a global financial meltdown. New president Barack Obama gave Biden a leading role in the economic recovery — his approach was to find middle-ground solutions that might anger people, but not alienate them. If elected president, Biden's aides say he wants to pick up where he left off, especially on infrastructure and clean energy. Campaign 2020 There are 78 days until the election. Here's the latest on the race for control of the White House and Congress. Biden will accept his party's nomination Thursday at the Democratic National Convention, which begins today. It will be almost entirely virtual, with speakers, including some rising stars, delivering addresses that will be streamed online and broadcast by network and cable news outlets. Click here for our viewers' guide. Other developments: Sign up to receive daily election updates as a direct mobile notification on Twitter. Simply click on this link and like the tweet. Tangible steps | Israel and the United Arab Emirates are moving toward normalizing ties, with the Gulf emirate lifting its block on calls with the Jewish state and companies forming a cross-border joint venture to research the coronavirus. Their foreign ministers spoke by phone and agreed to meet soon, as ties between Israel and Gulf Arab states warm up in part due to a shared distrust of Iran and its regional and nuclear ambitions. - The UAE summoned the Iranian charges d'affaires over President Hassan Rouhani's reaction to the deal, which it deemed "inflammatory" after Tehran called the pact a strategic mistake.
Seeking help | The Kremlin said President Vladimir Putin is prepared to provide support to Belarus — including within the countries' security alliance "if necessary" — after leader Alexander Lukashenko appealed for his help in the face of unprecedented protests. Hundreds of thousands gathered peacefully in the capital, Minsk, and rallied in other cities yesterday, calling for Lukashenko to resign, with nationwide strikes to resume today.  Opposition supporters attend a rally yesterday in central Minsk. Photographer: Sergei Gapon/AFP Testing times | Boris Johnson's government is facing yet another backlash over its handling of the coronavirus — this time over U.K. school test results used for job and university applications. The nation's lockdown meant pupils were unable to take final-year exams, and an algorithm developed to provide results appeared to drag down scores of students in economically disadvantaged areas. On the streets | In one of the largest gatherings yet among Thailand's anti-government protesters, more than 10,000 people rallied in the capital of Bangkok yesterday to demand an end to the military-led administration and call for the monarchy's powers to be reined in. The protests are breaking deeply entrenched taboos in the Southeast Asian nation, where openly criticizing the monarch can lead to long jail sentences and worse. The government has vowed to investigate those behind the demonstrations. What to Watch This Week - New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has delayed a general election by four weeks until Oct. 17, as the nation's first community outbreak of Covid-19 in more than three months worsens.
- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau plans to meet today with Finance Minister Bill Morneau amid public strains between the two over the next steps to support Canada's economic recovery.
- German Chancellor Angela Merkel meets with President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday in France, as they seek to calm territorial tensions between Turkey and Greece in the Eastern Mediterranean.
- Somalian security forces ended a siege at a popular hotel in Mogadishu's Lido beach that left at least 16 people dead and more than 13 injured.
- Another round of talks on a trade deal between the European Union and the U.K. is scheduled to start tomorrow in Brussels, with fisheries among the main sticking points.
Thanks to all who responded to our pop quiz Friday and congratulations to Mond McKenzie, who was the first to name Russia as the first nation to register a Covid-19 vaccine. And finally ... Millions of Californians are being plunged into darkness as utilities battle to keep their grids from collapsing. With the coronavirus still spreading, people must choose between enduring a severe heat wave at home and seeking relief elsewhere in a state that's reported more infections than any other. The extreme weather events are being made more frequent by climate change.  Firefighters extinguish a hot spot while working to contain the Apple Fire in Yucaipa, California, on Aug. 4. Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg | 
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