The image of Saudi King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman projected on the Kingdom Tower during National Day ceremonies, Riyadh, Sept. 24, 2017 (Saudi Culture and Information Ministry photo via AP).

The dust is beginning to settle after Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman surprised observers with a purge of prominent members of the Saudi royal family and business community nearly two months ago. Debate continues over how much the detention of 320 key figures in Riyadh was a decisive move to stamp out corruption in Saudi society, or the culmination of a power grab that has unfolded since Mohammed bin Salman burst onto the scene when his father became king in January 2015. Either way, it is clear that policymaking authority is concentrated in one individual to a degree unprecedented in […]

A protest against the pardon of former President Alberto Fujimori. The poster reads in Spanish, “assassin, thief, no to pardon,” Lima, Peru, Dec. 25, 2017 (AP photo by Martin Mejia).

LIMA, Peru—Peruvians had a hard time enough concentrating on Christmas preparations as they watched their president, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, barely avoid impeachment on corruption charges on Dec. 21. But then, three days later, on Christmas Eve, Kuczynski pardoned former President Alberto Fujimori. Known for his authoritarianism and human rights abuses during his decade in power in the 1990s, Fujimori spent the past 12 years in jail, convicted of corruption and crimes against humanity. His divisive pardon has already sparked large protests. The riveting political drama during a week that is usually reserved for shopping and parties caps a tumultuous year […]

Guinean President Alpha Conde attends a working session at the G-20 summit, Hamburg, Germany, July 8, 2017 (AP photo by Michael Sohn).

Editor’s Note: This article is part of an ongoing series about press freedom and safety in various countries around the world. In late November, 40 leading radio stations in the West African nation of Guinea suspended their programming in an act of solidarity with another radio station that was closed by the government. The protest was a sign of the growing tension between the government of President Alpha Conde and the Guinean press. In an email interview, Muheeb Saeed, a program officer at the Media Foundation for West Africa, explains what was behind the recent protest, and how press freedom […]

Cyril Ramaphosa addresses delegates during the closing of the conference of the African National Congress, Johannesburg, South Africa, Dec. 20, 2017 (AP photo by Themba Hadebe).

After a decade of Jacob Zuma’s leadership of the African National Congress, or ANC, and more than eight years of him as South Africa’s president, it was hardly surprising that Cyril Ramaphosa’s election to the ANC presidency on Dec. 18 was almost universally welcomed beyond the ranks of the ruling party itself. Zuma’s time in power has been characterized by corruption and dysfunctional governance. However, despite the surge of enthusiasm for Ramaphosa at home and abroad, reflected in an immediate rallying of the rand on global financial markets, the paradox of his election is that it was far from universally […]

People take part in a protest against large-scale government logging in the Bialowieza Forest, Poland, Aug. 13, 2017 (AP photo by Czarek Sokolowski).

Last month, the Court of Justice of the European Union, or CJEU, ordered Poland to cease logging activities in the Bialowieza Forest “to avoid serious and irreparable damage to the interests of the European Union.” Though the dispute has received less attention than the ongoing fight over judicial reforms, it is similarly contributing to tension between Warsaw and Brussels. In an email interview, Duncan Liefferink, a political scientist specializing in European environmental politics at Radboud University Nijmegen in the Netherlands, analyzes the two sides’ positions and explains how EU environmental policy relates to the rights of member states over their […]

Gabonese President Ali Bongo Ondimba attends an event at the EU-Africa summit, Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire, Nov. 29, 2017 (AP photo by Diomande Ble Blonde).

Last week, the National Assembly of Gabon passed a bill that would revise the country’s constitution. It did so with as little fanfare as possible. As AFP noted, the news went unmentioned on state media, and the official who confirmed it to the agency declined to give his name. This is perhaps unsurprising given that President Ali Bongo Ondimba’s government has kept the actual substance of the revisions under wraps as well, opting not to make the bill public even though the Cabinet approved it back in September before sending it to lawmakers. Multiple versions have circulated online, but the […]

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili stands behind the glass and talks to reporters before a court hearing, Kiev, Ukraine, Dec. 11, 2017 (AP photo by Efrem Lukatsky).

The conflict in Ukraine, which has raged for more than four years since the Maidan uprising of November 2013, is often portrayed as a clash between the West, which favors greater integration with Europe and the United States, and the East, which favors ties with Russia. But it is degenerating into a clash of egos jockeying for control of a corrupt, dysfunctional state that outside powers other than Russia are barely invested in anymore. Consider the case of Mikheil Saakashvili, the controversial U.S.-educated former prime minister of Georgia, who in May 2015 was appointed governor of the Odessa region on […]

Laotian Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith is greeted by Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People, Beijing, Dec. 1, 2016 (Pool photo via AP).

When Laos’ National Assembly ratified the appointment of a new president and prime minister to lead the closed, one-party communist state in early 2016, most analysts viewed the political changes in Vientiane as signaling a shift away from its much larger and influential neighbor, China. Laos, it seemed, was making a concerted attempt to balance relations more equally with its other neighbors. Yet two years on, China’s influence in its impoverished southern neighbor has only grown. A controversial railway project funded by Beijing is moving forward, and President Xi Jinping made a high-profile state visit in November, touting Laos as […]

Corsican nationalist leader Gilles Simeoni answers media questions after a meeting in Paris, France, Jan. 18, 2016 (AP photo by Thibault Camus).

On Dec. 10, a coalition of nationalist parties on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica swept elections for the regional assembly, defeating traditional parties and French President Emmanuel Macron’s new centrist movement. Immediately after their victory, the nationalists called for talks with Paris over more autonomy. In an email interview, Andre Fazi, a lecturer in political science at the University of Corsica, discusses the roots of Corsican nationalism and the implications of the nationalists’ electoral triumph both for the island and for France. WPR: What are the main driving forces behind nationalism in Corsica, and how have they evolved in […]

Kuwait’s emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, oversees the Gulf Cooperation Council summit in Kuwait City, Dec. 5, 2017 (AP photo by Jon Gambrell).

The split within the Gulf Cooperation Council that pits regional powers Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates against Qatar has proven surprisingly durable. Kuwaiti efforts to mediate the six-month-long dispute have failed, most recently and notably when Kuwait’s emir convened the annual GCC summit on Dec. 5 and was forced to end the proceedings early just after the closed-door opening remarks. The intra-Gulf rupture has spilled over to the region’s external relations, making it harder for security partners to insist on maintaining even and equal relations with all GCC members. From informal think tank consultations to formal intergovernmental forums, […]

German state representative Jeannine Rosler, left, participates in a protest against tax evasion prompted by revelations included in the Paradise Papers leak, Schwerin, Germany, Nov. 15, 2017 (dpa photo via AP).

Public interest in offshore banks and their financial services, particularly in the Caribbean, has risen considerably after revelations in two major leaks known as the Panama Papers and the Paradise Papers. The increasingly common practice of the super-rich, celebrities and political figures using Caribbean countries to shelter their income from taxes at home has been a gold mine for investigative reporters. The public outcries have pushed politicians to respond, most recently and prominently with the European Union’s decision to blacklist 17 tax havens “seen as not cooperative on tax matters,” including several in the Caribbean. But the Caribbean side of […]

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during a news conference following the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation's Extraordinary Summit, Istanbul, Turkey, Dec. 13, 2017 (AP photo by Yasin Bulbul).

No doubt shocked by U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision earlier this month to carry out his campaign promise to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, Mahmoud Abbas has been scrambling for an appropriate response. His initial reaction was to slam the decision, declaring that “the United States has become no longer qualified to sponsor the peace process.” Since then, he has shuttled between Middle Eastern capitals drumming up opposition to the move. But beyond statements of indignation, it is not clear that Abbas has considered any real shifts in Palestinian strategy. The Palestinian Authority will “remain committed to the […]

Journalists look on from the balcony as Russian lawmakers prepare to vote in the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, Moscow, Russia, Dec. 6, 2017 (AP photo by Pavel Golovkin).

Editor’s Note: This article is part of an ongoing series about press freedom and safety in various countries around the world. On Dec. 5, Russia designated two U.S. government-funded broadcasters, Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, as “foreign agents,” under a new law signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in late November. The moves came in response, Moscow says, to the United States forcing the Russia-backed news broadcaster RT, formerly known as Russia Today, to register as a foreign agent on Nov. 13. U.S. intelligence agencies described RT as “Russia’s state-run propaganda machine” in their assessment earlier this […]

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson meets with British Prime Minister Theresa May at No. 10 Downing Street, London, Sept. 14, 2017 (State Department Photo).

It is the season for columnists to nominate their words, songs and people of the year. Here are mine. My word of the year is “defeat,” with a special nod to its derivative form “defeatist.” My song is “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” by the Rolling Stones. And my people of 2017 are British Prime Minister Theresa May and U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. I acknowledge that these are not immediately obvious choices. “Defeat” is not exactly a novel word or concept, to start with. Its first known use in English was in the 15th century. “You […]

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The rise of populist leaders and parties in Europe and the United States over the past two years has reshaped the political landscape from Budapest to Washington. Challenging elites as corrupt and disconnected from common concerns, these populists claim to derive their legitimacy from the supposed will of the people and usually use their influence to blame some “other” for the country’s ills. They have tried to upend post-Cold War norms on everything from free trade to the integration of Europe, raising fears in the West about the strength of the rule of law and even democracy itself. But this […]

People search for their names on voter lists for mayoral elections at a polling station, Caracas, Venezuela, Dec. 10, 2017 (AP photo by Ariana Cubillos).

In this week’s Trend Lines podcast, WPR’s editor-in-chief, Judah Grunstein, managing editor, Frederick Deknatel, and associate editor, Omar H. Rahman, discuss Russian President Vladimir Putin’s victory lap during his visit to Syria on Dec. 11 and the extent of Russian influence in a changing Middle East. For the Report, Stephania Corpi talks with Peter Dörrie about how the ongoing political, economic and humanitarian crisis in Venezuela is driving a wave of outmigration into neighboring countries in South America. If you like what you hear on Trend Lines, as well as what you’ve seen on WPR, please think about supporting our […]

A Nepalese man casts his vote during the legislative elections in Chautara, Sindupalchowk, Nepal, Nov. 26, 2017 (AP photo by Niranjan Shrestha).

KATHMANDU, Nepal—Scarred by a civil war in the 1990s, and sapped by constitutional crises in the decade after, Nepal is finally facing some prospect of electoral democracy and constitutional stability. On Dec. 7, it successfully concluded elections for national and state legislatures, implementing the most important and challenging aspects of its 2015 constitution, which was adopted despite sustained opposition from some ethnic minority groups. The elections were a landmark moment for a Nepali state experimenting with the devolution of power at municipal, state and federal levels all at once and for the first time since the formation of the Kingdom […]

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