U.S. President Barack Obama with Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, during the 10th East Asia Summit at the 27th ASEAN Summit, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Nov. 22, 2015 (AP photo by Vincent Thian).

Editor’s note: This is the final article in a WPR series on the South China Sea territorial disputes and the various claimant countries’ approaches to addressing them. The tiny sultanate of Brunei is perhaps the least visible of the six claimants in the South China Sea maritime disputes, in part due to its preferred approach of addressing the issue discreetly. In an email interview, Jatswan Singh, associate professor in the Department of International and Security Studies at the University of Malaya, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, discussed Brunei’s claims in the South China Sea. WPR: What are Brunei’s territorial claims in […]

Saudi Arabia's Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ali Ibrahim Naimi at the 10th Arab Energy Conference, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Dec. 21, 2014 (AP photo by Kamran Jebreili).

Editor’s note: This article is part of an ongoing WPR series on the impact of falling oil and commodities prices on resource-exporting countries. In a recent interview with The Economist, Saudi Arabia’s deputy crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, talked about the kingdom’s plans to roll out avalue-added tax, as well as the possibility of privatizing Aramco, the state oil company, as ways to increase non-oil revenues in the face of the drop in global energy prices. In an email interview, Robert Looney, distinguished professor in the Department of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School, discusses the economic and […]

Azerbaijan’s president, Ilham Aliyev, at a meeting of the Eastern Partnership, Prague, Czech Republic, April 24, 2014 (AP photo by Petr David Josek).

Editor’s note: This article is part of an ongoing WPR series on the impact of falling oil and commodities prices on resource-exporting countries. In mid-January, protests in Azerbaijan against price hikes and a collapse in the country’s currency were broken up forcefully by security forces, resulting in the arrest of 55 people. In an email interview, Richard D. Kauzlarich, the co-director of the Center for Energy Science and Policy at George Mason University who also served as the U.S. ambassador to Azerbaijan from 1994 to 1997, explains the impact of the collapse of global energy prices on Azerbaijan’s economy. WPR: […]

Egypt's parliament, packed with supporters of President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi, meeting for the first time in three years, Cairo, Jan. 10, 2016 (Lobna Tarek, El-Shorouk Newspaper via AP).

Is there a tipping point for the grim state of affairs in Egypt, where the fifth anniversary of the popular uprising that brought down former President Hosni Mubarak is less than two weeks away? On Jan. 7, supporters of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood clashed with police outside a hotel in Giza; no one was injured, but the exchange of gunfire was another hit to Egypt’s tourism industry. It was also a rare sign of Brotherhood supporters taking to the streets, after being severely repressed over the past two and a half years. The next day, two men armed with knives […]

A worker at the Tengiz oil refinery, Kazakhstan, Aug. 30, 2004 (AP photo by Anatoly Ustinenko).

Editor’s note: This article is part of an ongoing WPR series on the impact of falling oil and commodities prices on resource-exporting countries. Last month, Kazakhstan announced that it was going to expand production at the Tengiz oil field, increasing output from 26 million to 38 million tons of oil per year. In an email interview, Peter Howie, an associate professor at Nazarbayev University, discussed Kazahkstan’s economy and the role of commodities. WPR: How important are commodities for Kazakhstan’s economy, and what effect have falling commodities prices had on public spending and, by consequence, political stability? Peter Howie: Since 2000, […]

Slovak President Andrej Kiska with an Afghan refugee, Bratislava, Slovakia, Sept. 17, 2015 (CTK via AP Images).

Editor’s note: This article is part of an ongoing WPR series on the European refugee crisis and European Union member states’ approaches to addressing it. Last month, Slovakia filed a lawsuit at the European Court of Justice against the European Union’s plan to redistribute 120,000 refugees across all 28 member states. In an email interview, Katarina Lezova, a visiting research fellow at Goldsmiths, University of London, discussed Slovakia’s response to the refugee crisis. WPR: How affected has Slovakia been by the refugee crisis in Europe? Katarina Lezova: Slovakia has not been greatly affected by the crisis, especially in comparison to […]

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak atthe 48th ASEAN Foreign Ministers meeting, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Aug. 4, 2015 (AP photo by Vincent Thian).

Editor’s note: This article is part of an ongoing WPR series on the South China Sea territorial disputes and the various claimant countries’ approaches to addressing them. Last November, Malaysia’s deputy prime minister spoke out against China’s aggressive behavior in the South China Sea and questioned Beijing’s historical claims to the region. In an email interview, Prashanth Parameswaran, an associate editor at The Diplomat, discussed Malaysia’s defense of its South China Sea claims. WPR: What are Malaysia’s territorial claims in the South China Sea, and with what other countries do they overlap or conflict? Prashanth Parameswaran: Within the South China […]

Anti-corruption protesters at a rally in front of parliament, Kiev, Ukraine, Dec. 23, 2015 (AP photo by Efrem Lukatsky.

Editor’s note: This article is part of an ongoing WPR series on the impact of corruption and various countries’ efforts to combat it. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is facing growing calls to root out corruption, but must ensure any reform on that front does not lead to government instability. In an email interview, Anna Derevyanko, the executive director of the European Business Association in Kiev, discussed Ukraine’s fight against corruption. WPR: How widespread is corruption in Ukraine, and what impact does it have on governance, business and the daily life of Ukrainians? Anna Derevyanko: Ukraine is the most corrupt country […]