Economics & Business Archive

Editor’s note: This article is part of an ongoing WPR series on a range of countries’ space priorities and programs. This summer, at a meeting with government officials, researchers from the Korea Aerospace Research Institute announced that the first test launch of South Korea’s indigenous next-generation rocket would be delayed by 10 months, until late 2018. In an email interview, Daniel Pinkston, a professor at Troy University’s Seoul campus, discusses South Korea’s space program. WPR: What are South Korea’s space capabilities, in terms of its space-industrial complex, and who are its major international partners, in terms of space diplomacy and […]

Nero famously fiddled while Rome burned. When it comes to the European Union, its leaders don’t even bother to treat us to music. Confronted with multiple crises on fronts both external and domestic, they seem content to drift nonchalantly toward the abyss. The question is not so much whether the EU as we know it will survive; it is already irrevocably altered by Brexit. The question is whether the ideals that the union has historically championed will continue to have any relevance in today’s political landscape in Europe and the world. The list of Europe’s many crises is well known, […]

Recent visits to Cuba by a bevy of European and Asian leaders highlight a key element of Raul Castro’s foreign policy that he has pursued alongside normalization with the United States: Don’t put all of Cuba’s eggs in one international basket. Cuba learned this lesson the hard way. Pre-revolutionary dependence on the United States, followed by post-revolutionary dependence on the Soviet Union, twice plunged Cuba into economic crisis when those ties were severed. Although less drastic, the current austerity triggered by the decline in oil shipments from Venezuela underscores the danger of relying on a single foreign partner. Cuba’s leaders […]

The Philippines completed an audit of its mining sector over the summer, which last month resulted in 10 mines being closed and another 20 being suspended for environomental violations. In an email interview, Minerva Chaloping-March, a research fellow at the Philippines-Australia Studies Centre at LaTrobe University, discusses the Philippines’ recent crackdown on the mining industry. WPR: How important is the mining sector for the Philippines’ economy, and what impact will the mine closures have on it? Minerva Chaloping-March: The Philippines is a major producer of nickel, gold and copper, and also exports silver, iron ore, chromium and zinc. However, recent […]

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani was in Vietnam this week, the first stop of a three-nation tour of Southeast Asia. During his visit, Rouhani and Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang agreed to work toward the goal of boosting trade to $2 billion. In an email interview, John Calabrese, an assistant professor at American University, discusses Iran’s diplomatic outreach in Southeast Asia. WPR: What is the state of diplomatic and economic ties between Iran and Southeast Asia, particularly Vietnam, and what areas and sectors present the best opportunities to deepen relations? John Calabrese: Iran’s interactions with Southeast Asia are not new. Iranian […]

Last month, China successfully launched the world’s first quantum satellite, which is designed to establish “hack-proof” communications between space and the ground. The launch puts China ahead of its rivals in the quest to develop quantum technology, which has major implications for security and defense policy. In an email interview, Taylor Owen, an assistant professor of digital media and global affairs at the University of British Columbia and the author of “Disruptive Power: The Crisis of the State in the Digital Age,” and Robert Gorwa, a graduate student at the Oxford Internet Institute and a researcher at the University of […]

Good economic news out of the Caribbean has been few and far-between in recent years. For most countries in the region, the aftermath of the global financial crisis has been full of vicious cycles of slow growth, rising debt, increased unemployment, mounting crime and falling foreign direct investment. Attempts to break out of this pattern have largely failed, leading to increased misery for those who stay and the uncertainty of emigration for those who leave. While Puerto Rico attracts much of the media attention, the situation is just as dire in a dozen or more Caribbean countries. In September, the […]