Economics & Business Archive

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia—Since ascending to the Saudi throne in January 2015, King Salman has launched a range of reform initiatives. One of the more radical, but least sign-posted, is a drive for greater accountability and transparency in public life. Saudi commentators believe the move is aimed in part at cutting the ground out from under the scores of critics on social media who accuse senior Saudi officials and members of the royal family of pocketing a large share of the country’s huge oil revenue. The initiative may also be intended to compensate for the absence of political reform in the […]

Last week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan went on a four-day visit of East Africa, stopping in Uganda, Kenya and Somalia to promote trade, tourism and security ties. In an email interview, David Shinn, an adjunct professor at the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University and former U.S. ambassador to Burkina Faso and Ethiopia, discussed Turkey’s outreach to East Africa. WPR: Who are Turkey’s main partners in East Africa, and what are the key areas of cooperation? David Shinn: Turkey has an embassy in every country in East Africa and the Horn of Africa, but has made […]

Energy minsters and clean energy leaders from around the world descended upon San Francisco, California, this week for the seventh Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM), the first major international follow-up to the historic global climate accord struck in Paris last December. Diplomats and negotiators have rightly been praised for the success of the COP 21 Paris agreement, the most comprehensive global deal to date on climate change, with buy-in from virtually every nation on earth. But to mitigate the worst effects of climate change by displacing greenhouse gas-producing fossil fuels, countries must expand their clean energy infrastructure. The CEM, which has […]

Last Friday, Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic made an unannounced visit to Moscow. The trip came amid reports of Russian concern with Serbia’s overtures to the West, including taking steps toward joining the European Union. Later that day, Russian President Vladimir Putin headed to Greece, where he discussed energy cooperation and investment with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, before visiting the male-only Monastery of St. Panteleimon on Mount Athos with the head of Russia’s Orthodox Church. The trip was Putin’s first to an EU country this year, as the debate heats up in Brussels over renewing EU sanctions against Russia […]

LIMA, Peru—As Peruvian voters head to the polls this Sunday to elect a new president, many will be thinking of former President Alberto Fujimori, who governed from 1990 to 2000 and is now imprisoned in Lima for crimes ranging from corruption to authorizing death squad killings. Reviled by some Peruvians and admired by others, Fujimori has a polemical but powerful political legacy here, where his daughter Keiko is the front-runner in the presidential race, his son Kenji was recently re-elected to the Peruvian Congress, and a political movement he created won a majority in the Congress during the first round […]

U.S. President Barack Obama’s recent trip to Hiroshima, Japan, was symbolically important for historical reasons. It is also an example of the Obama administration’s ongoing efforts to manage old partnerships and solidify new ones as it rebalances its strategic focus to Asia. But the U.S. is not alone in eyeing countries in the region as potential partners. The following 10 articles are free for non-subscribers until Thursday, June 16. Managing U.S. Partnerships in Asia Looking Back to Look Ahead: The U.S.-Japan Alliance in Today’s Asia Following Obama’s visit to Hiroshima in May, Sheila Smith wrote that, symbolism aside, many still […]

Last week, South Korean President Park Geun-hye arrived in Ethiopia, the first stop on her week-long Africa tour that also includes visits to Kenya and Uganda. In an email interview, J. Berkshire Miller, a fellow on Japan for the Pacific Forum CSIS, discussed South Korea’s ties in Africa. WPR: How extensive are South Korea’s political and economic ties in Africa, and what countries are its main partners? J. Berkshire Miller: South Korean President Park Geun-hye’s visit to Africa is meant to underscore her administration’s desire to have a more comprehensive and robust relationship with key states on the continent. As […]

Last week, Cyprus held legislative elections. While the two biggest parties, the Democratic Rally and the Progressive Party of Working People, lost significant support, they still managed to come in first and second place, respectively. In an email interview, James Ker-Lindsay, the Eurobank EFG senior research fellow on the politics of Southeast Europe, discussed the recent elections and what they mean for politics in Cyprus. WPR: What factors explain the declining support for the two main parties—the Democratic Rally (DISY) and the Progressive Party of Working People (AKEL)—and the rise of the far right in the recent legislative elections in […]