Tuesday, Sep 24, 2019 | View in browser

Good morning.

We’re covering the U.N. climate summit and Greta Thunberg’s biting remarks. We’re also looking at the collapse of the world’s oldest travel company and tigers in Thailand.

By Alisha Haridasani Gupta

Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old Swedish climate activist, speaking at the United Nations Climate Action Summit on Monday. Carlo Allegri/Reuters

U.N. climate talks contrast with protests

World leaders and corporate executives gathered in New York for the United Nations climate summit, just days after young people and their supporters around the world demanded action in the fight against climate change.

Protests in Washington that disrupted the morning commute tried to drive home the urgency for change.

Most quoted: The teenage activist Greta Thunberg lit into the gathered crowd for their “business as usual” approach. “We are in the beginning of a mass extinction and all you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth,” she said, visibly angry. “How dare you.” Watch the video.

Major emitters: China, the largest greenhouse gas emitter, signaled no ambition higher than the targets in the Paris Agreement. India said it would increase its share of renewable energy by 2022 but made no promises to reduce its use of coal. The most notable pledges came from cities and private businesses.

President Trump unexpectedly dropped into the hall, but made no address. The former New York City mayor and billionaire Michael Bloomberg drew some laughter when he told Mr. Trump, “Hopefully our discussions here will be useful for you when you formulate climate policy.”

The British-flagged tanker Stena Impero off the coast of Iran in August. Wana News Agency/Via Reuters

Iran frees British tanker

Tehran said the tanker that it had seized in July could leave on Monday, in a rare display of cooperation amid an escalating cycle of confrontation with its neighbors and the West. It’s still not clear when the tanker will set sail.

The move comes more than a month after Britain released an Iranian vessel it had seized off Gibraltar.

Analysis: Given that officials in the United States and Saudi Arabia have blamed Iran for the attack on Saudi oil facilities this month, releasing the British tanker might do little to ease tensions. Tehran is likely to be on the defensive as the United Nations General Assembly unfolds.

Another angle: The Trump administration has been considering a range of options to punish Iran for the Saudi oil strike. A cyberstrike has emerged as the most appealing course of action.

U.S.-Japan trade deal may be delayed

Mr. Trump’s threat to tax cars imported into the United States from Japan has thrown a wrench into the plan to sign a limited trade deal this week.

Mr. Trump and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe were supposed to announce the deal side by side at the General Assembly. Instead, the two sides may issue a joint statement, several people familiar with the negotiations said.

Sticking point: Cars represent more than a third of what Japan shipped to the United States last year. The country is seeking a firm commitment from the Trump administration not to place tariffs on cars and a sunset clause that would end the deal if the president follows through on his threat.

If you have 7 minutes, this is worth it

Thailand’s tiger captivity problem grows

Amanda Mustard for The New York Times

Despite the Thai government’s public efforts to crack down on the illegal trade in tigers and tiger parts, the number of the animals in captivity has tripled to about 2,000 and the number of facilities with captive tigers has grown to 67.

Activists say some of these places amount to little more than farms that feed a thriving underground market in tiger skins, bones, genitalia and other parts for Chinese and Vietnamese traditional medicine.

Here’s what else is happening

Thomas Cook: The world’s oldest travel company said all of its flights and vacations had been canceled after negotiations to obtain necessary financing for the debt-ridden company fell apart, stranding 600,000 travelers and setting in motion the biggest peacetime repatriation in British history.

Boris Johnson: Britain’s prime minister is enmeshed in a new scandal, even as he struggles in Brexit turbulence. An article in the Sunday Times of London reported that, while serving as London’s mayor, he directed government money to a young American entrepreneur he often visited during working hours, and that he gave the former model coveted spots on his trade missions.

Nissan: The Japanese automaker will pay a $15 million fine, and Carlos Ghosn, its former chairman, will pay $1 million, to settle charges related to false financial disclosures, the Securities and Exchange Commission said Monday.

Migration: European lawmakers, seizing on fresh momentum after the collapse of Italy’s anti-immigrant government, are working on a deal that would redistribute migrants on aid ships to member states and lift heavy burdens on front-line countries like Greece, Italy and Malta.

Papua New Guinea: Violent protests in the restive Indonesian province, set off by rumors that a teacher insulted an indigenous student, left at least 20 people dead.

Gilles Sabrié for The New York Times

Snapshot: Above, residents in Beijing watching as tanks rolled by during a rehearsal for a grand celebration next week to mark the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. A Times correspondent in Beijing who lives near Tiananmen Square reflected on the related security crackdown in what is already a stifling authoritarian state.

Privacy Project: In a three-part series, the Silicon Valley maverick Jaron Lenier explains how we can all earn money from our data.

ICYMI: “Fleabag” dominated the Emmys comedy category, Billy Porter became the first openly gay winner for best actor in a drama and Michelle Williams delivered a heartfelt rallying cry for equal pay. Here’s a list of the big winners and the best and worst moments of the night.

“Stairway to Heaven”: The Led Zeppelin megahit was back in court on Monday for a copyright infringement case concerning the song’s famous acoustic opening passage.

What we’re reading: “As Edward Snowden himself points out,” writes our food editor, Sam Sifton, “you should absolutely read Janine Gibson on Edward Snowden, in The Financial Times.”

Now, a break from the news

Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Cook: Perfect boiled eggs, with the guidance of our new food contributor, J. Kenji Lopez-Alt of Serious Eats and “Food Lab” fame. (After testing 700 eggs, he settled on steaming, rather than boiling.)

Watch: “Frozen 2” is coming out in November, but the trailer is out now.

Listen: Our pop music critics’ latest Playlist includes Green Day’s time warp and songs by Soccer Mommy, Celine Dion and Gang Starr.

Smarter Living: Dentists recommend flossing every day. But for those who hate the feeling of string between their teeth, or who have difficulties with dexterity, there are other options. Experts told us about five floss alternatives, including oral irrigators that use a water jet and interdental brushes — essentially tiny toothbrushes that can fit between your teeth.

Are you keeping up with health news? Try our quiz.

And now for the Back Story on …

The father of modern tourism

The travel company Thomas Cook was in business for nearly 180 years before collapsing on Monday.

It was named for its founder, a carpenter born in England in 1808 and raised as a strict Baptist. As an adult, he became active in the temperance movement, which promoted abstaining from alcohol.

The Thomas Cook statue in Leicester, England. Darren Staples/Getty Images

In 1841, he arranged for a train to carry hundreds of members of the temperance society from Leicester, in central England, to a meeting in the nearby town of Loughborough.

With the success of the trip, Cook started offering excursions around Britain, and, in 1855, led his first tour of Europe, a package that included travel, accommodation and food.

His son, John Mason Cook, later joined the business, and in 1872 Thomas Cook led his first round-the-world tour, a seven-month trip in which he covered more than 29,000 miles.

A statue of Thomas Cook stands outside the Leicester train station, the starting point of his initial excursion.

That’s it for this briefing. And apologies: Monday’s Back Story missed the first “h” in the surname of the former Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev. See you next time.

— Alisha

Thank you
To Mark Josephson and Eleanor Stanford for the break from the news. Chris Stanford, on the briefings team, wrote today’s Back Story. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.

P.S.
• We’re listening to “The Daily.” Our latest episode is about the phone call between President Trump and the leader of Ukraine.
• Here’s our Mini Crossword, and a clue: Like the 1-7 balls in pool (five letters). You can find all our puzzles here.
• The Metropolitan Opera said it would stage the first work by a black composer in its 136-year history. It’s based on a memoir by the Times Opinion columnist Charles Blow.