TAX — IRISH CENTRAL BANKER SAYS IRELAND WILL COPE WITH HIGHER GLOBAL CORPORATE TAX RATE: Ireland built its modern economy on a 12.5 percent corporate tax rate — enticing many global corporations to set up shop and report profits there. This has put Dublin on a collision course with a U.S. proposal, backed by 130 countries, to establish a global minimum tax rate of 15 percent. "The change in corporation tax rate certainly will have some impact," Irish Central Bank Governor Gabriel Makhlouf told POLITICO. "But is it something that I, sitting here as the governor of a central bank, worry about in a significant way? That would be an exaggeration." It's the side deals: For European regulators the question is often not the headline tax rate in Ireland, but the government's tendency to do special deals with individual companies such as Apple, that deliver even lower rates to them. The Italian government won a settlement from Apple, after it accused the company of booking sales to Italians through Ireland instead of Italy, avoiding sales tax. The EU executive attempted to claw back more than $15 billion in taxes it says Apple should have paid to the Irish government. Apple meanwhile says it pays more tax than any other company in the world. GERMANY — FRONTRUNNER TO REPLACE MERKEL TRIPS AGAIN: Armin Laschet just can't put a foot right these days — and it's a real pattern rather than a couple of unlucky stumbles. The latest issue: plagiarism, a problem that has forced several other ministers and Chancellor contenders out of office during the past decade. The only "saving grace": Annalena Baerbock, the Green candidate for Chancellor, has also faced accusations of plagiarism. Laschet is still favored to win Germany's September election, but he faces extremely long odds on the question of whether he can fill Merkel's shoes. His approval rating has fallen from 47 to 35 percent over the past month. IRAN — ATTACK ON COMMERCIAL SHIP ATTRIBUTED: Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday that of an exploding drone attack on the commercial ship Mercer Street was conducted in international waters, killing two people. Blinken said "we are confident that Iran conducted this attack." The ship flew under a Liberian flag, but is linked to Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer. TUNISIA — THE VIEW FROM JAKE SULLIVAN: In an hour-long discussion between President Kais Saied and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan (notably, Joe Biden was absent), the NSC said Sullivan focused on the "critical need for Tunisian leaders to outline a swift return to Tunisia's democratic path." Saied dismissed the prime minister and suspended parliament eight days ago. The U.S. now wants "the timely return of the elected parliament" and a new government to "stabilize Tunisia's economy and confront the Covid-19 pandemic. Translation: 87 percent of Tunisians might support the President suspending Parliament, but the U.S. isn't sending Saied a blank check on that basis. TAIWAN ON EDGE: Admiral Lee Hsi-min, former head of Taiwan's armed forces, says China's military incursions into Taiwanese air space are frenetic, and well beyond "grey zone" behavior. AFGHANISTAN — DEADLY ATTACK ON U.N. COMPOUND: The attack, which the U.S. government attributes to "anti-government militants," took place in Herat in the country's west and killed a local guard. 'Complete disaster': Inside the Biden team's chaotic bid to evacuate Afghan interpreters. "It's my view that the evacuations should have started right after the announcement of our withdrawal. That evacuation started too late," Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.), a former Army Ranger who served in Afghanistan, said in an interview. The Biden administration is broadening the opportunity for Afghans affiliated with the U.S. war effort. COVID AND CHINA: The eastern Chinese city of Yangzhou suspended domestic flights over a mini-outbreak of 16 cases. China has administered more than 1.65 billion vaccine doses according to government figures. | 
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