The Monocle Minute

China will next week mark the 70th anniversary of the end of the Second World War with a military parade in Tiananmen Square. But hopes that the event could lead to an improvement in relations with Japan have been dashed after Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe decided not to attend. Abe’s fears that China’s show of military might could prove embarrassing should have been put to one side. Japan needs to take a leaf out of Germany’s book and make friends with its former regional enemies. This is not just about China. Closer relations are also necessary with South Korea, but Abe so far seems unwilling to go the extra mile.

As Turkish voters prepare to return to the polls in 1 November, after the ruling Justice and Development party (AKP) failed to form a government following June’s hung election, the big question is whether the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic party (HDP) can hold on to its dramatic gains. It may prove difficult. The HDP will have to breach the 10 per cent threshold of votes but with the resumption of hostilities between security forces and the separatist Kurdistan Workers’ party – and a heavy slump in the lira – it remains to be seen whether Turkey will opt for a more conservative vote.

Boeing’s decision to lay off hundreds of staff from its satellite business is another sign that the industry is in trouble. Just over a month ago ABS, the commercial satellite provider, cancelled a large contract with Boeing. Part of the problem concerns the future of Ex-Im, the US government’s export credit agency, which – thanks to conservatives in Congress – is now unable to provide new loans or trade guarantees. Without backing from Ex-Im companies are wary of investing too much in commercial satellites.

As the ancient city of Jerusalem approves Daniel Libeskind’s Pyramid Tower, David Plaisant asks the Polish-born American architect how he responds to the project’s critics.

Once a byword for all that ailed African nations, Ethiopia is again playing to its strengths – and its booming capital, Addis Ababa, is at the centre of the resurgence.