The European Union’s member states are locked in some heated debates this week about Europe’s energy future. The discussions involve about 10 different pieces of legislation, but they center on one fundamental question: Should the EU be technologically neutral about how it meets its climate targets?
Last week’s congressional hearing on the alleged security risk posed by TikTok put into stark contrast the gap between the app’s fans and critics. The push in Washington to ban the social media app comes against the backdrop of increasing U.S.-China tensions over technology and the economic and political influence it generates.
In recent years, Beijing’s strong foothold in Latin America has caused anxiety in Washington, particularly amid the recent resurgence of left-wing governments in South America. But although Beijing has made considerable gains in the region at Washington’s expense, claims about China’s influence there might be overstated.
Last Thursday, the International Monetary Fund released a statement describing Lebanon’s situation as “very dangerous,” due to the government’s failure to implement reforms. For ordinary Lebanese, that means navigating a landscape that combines the volitivity of a crashing stock market with the horrors of a dystopian movie.
Earlier this month, Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency reached an agreement to reestablish certain transparency measures at select nuclear sites. Amid growing concern over Iran’s expanding nuclear activities, the deal is a positive step that bodes well for international efforts to contain Iran’s nuclear program.
As the shock, horror and devastation of the earthquakes that hit Turkey in February slowly begin to fade, political candidates have begun jostling for position ahead of crucial elections scheduled for May 14. The vote represents the Turkish opposition’s best chance to unseat President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after 20 years in power.
Argentine President Alberto Fernandez’s recent address to the nation, in which he was expected to roll out his proposed policies to address the country’s economic crisis ahead of elections later this year, did not go as planned. The speech was poorly received and represented a missed opportunity to reshape the political narrative.
Following recent turbulence in Western financial markets, many states without vast resources at their disposal are teetering at the edge of financial collapse. As an increasing number of emerging markets face brutal choices, the impact of inflation and austerity could increase the likelihood of political crises and armed conflicts.
Last week, Honduras became the latest country to sever its diplomatic relations with Taiwan and instead recognize the People’s Republic of China. Taiwan has a choice: continue watching countries get picked off one by one due to Beijing’s checkbook diplomacy, or work with its allies to find a new way to relate to the world.
Mass protests broke out in Suriname last month after President Chan Santokhi decided to comply with the conditions of the government’s International Monetary Fund loan agreement—including a phasing out of state subsidies and the introduction of a new tax. The timing of the government’s austerity measures couldn’t have been worse.
India’s latest budget, which laid out plans to increase public investments in climate change mitigation efforts, signals progress on New Delhi’s commitment to halve its carbon emissions by 2030 and decarbonize its economy by 2070. But funding for adaptation is lacking, even as the effects of locked-in warming are already manifesting.
The effects of the migration surge to the EU are being keenly felt at the union’s internal borders. For months now, “temporary” border checks have been imposed to stop people-smugglers from bringing migrants into the EU via the Balkan route. Now tensions are heating up ahead of a leaders summit next week to discuss the issue.
The flow of people across the Mediterranean has been fueled by the social turmoil experienced by societies on both sides of the sea in the past decade. It’s clear that these societies are inextricably linked when it comes to politics and economic development, and nowhere is this more apparent than Italy, Libya and Tunisia.
According to some pundits, class identity in the United States matters only insofar as it is a proxy for anti-immigrant attitudes and resentment toward racial minorities. But we shouldn’t be so quick to accept the idea that class identification is unimportant to Americans and therefore politically irrelevant.
Many observers believed that the United States’ efforts to reorient its strategic focus to the Indo-Pacific region amid China’s resurgence had hit a snag when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. But for now, Washington may actually be accelerating its long-sought rebalance, recalibrating the center of gravity of U.S. foreign policy.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa named a new minister this week to tackle the country’s electricity crisis as part of a Cabinet shakeup ahead of general elections next year. But many regard it as a half-hearted measure that is unlikely to produce the tangible policy reforms they argue South Africa desperately needs.
European officials are whispering nervously about this week’s reports that a pro-Ukraine group, and not Russia, may have been behind the bombing of the Nord Stream pipeline. Should that be proven, it would create an immensely awkward diplomatic headache for Europe, particularly the countries through which the pipeline passes.