Saturday, April 4, 2020
News and Views from the Global South
Global Geopolitics
White Supremacists, Yellow Peril & “Chinese Virus” Add to a Volatile Political Mix
When US President Donald Trump repeatedly characterized the fast-spreading COVID-19 as a “Chinese virus” last week, it prompted some white supremacists to resurrect an age old ethnic slur against Chinese and East Asians: the “Yellow Peril” which, in a bygone era, was touted as a xenophobic threat to the Western world.
Could the Coronavirus Be a Biological Weapon in the Not-Too-Distant Future?
The devastating spread of the deadly coronavirus across every continent-- with the exception of Antarctica-- has triggered a conspiracy theory on social media: what if the virus was really a biological weapon?
The 2020 NPT Review Conference: From the Sublime to the Ridiculous
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and coincidentally the tenth quinquennial (five yearly) review conference is scheduled to be held at the United Nations in New York from 27 April to 22 May.
The Arc of Justice: The World’s Religions Launch Strategic Priorities for Peace
As a growing public health crisis becomes increasingly urgent, prominent global actors and institutions, including the United Nations, are confronted by the realisation that all hands on deck are required to address the cross-cutting challenges faced by our world today.
Q&A: ‘Place Gender Equality at the Heart of our Work’
Ambassador Mona Juul started her role as the Permanent Representative of Norway to the United Nations in January 2019, and is also the president of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
Coronavirus Threatens to Wreck Nuclear Review Conference
First, it was the ill-fated annual sessions of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), scheduled for March 9-20, which was undermined by the spreading coronavirus COVID-19.
A Multi-Billion Dollar US Mideast Arms Market May be in Jeopardy
When President Saddam Hussein ran one of the world’s most authoritarian regimes in the militarily-volatile Middle East during 1979-2003, US newspapers routinely described him as “the strongman of Iraq” — as most journalists rightly view dictators worldwide.
War No More
75 years ago following the end of the Second World War and the first time any state has dropped an atomic bomb, not once, but twice, on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, 51 countries from all continents met to create the United Nations.
Coronavirus: A Flashback to Biological Warfare of a Bygone Era
In the wake of the latest coronavirus outbreak, movie buffs are drawing an eerie parallel with the film Contagion, a 2011 thriller based on a lethal airborne virus called Nipah and how the world’s medical community battled to find a cure for the pandemic.
US Mideast Peace Plan: from a Paper Pharaoh & a Fake Moses
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin (Bibi) Netanyahu was slapped corruption charges last week while he was hobnobbing with US President Donald Trump in Washington. Bibi has, apparently, done his homework in psychology. He knew the quickest way to get around Trump was to flatter him.
US Mideast Peace Plan: Israelis Offered the Cheese & Palestinians the Holes
The Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem has described the much-ballyhooed US Middle East peace plan as “more like Swiss cheese-- with the cheese being offered to the Israelis and the holes to the Palestinians”.
China Ranked World’s Second Largest Arms Producer Trailing Behind US
Donald Trump, the vociferously unpredictable US president, has long chastised China for seeking “unfair” advantage over trade and tariffs, violating intellectual property rights and “manipulating” the country’s currency to its advantage.
Is Iraq Now a Virtual “US-Occupied Territory”?
Pat Buchanan, a senior advisor to three US Presidents and twice candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, once infamously described the United States Congress as “Israeli-occupied territory” -– apparently because of its unrelentingly blind support for the Jewish state.
U.S. Might Pull Troops from West Africa, but Who Will it Affect?
While the United States is busy with foreign operations such as killing Qasem Soleimani, a key figure in Middle East Politics, behind the scenes it is reportedly considering a change that experts worry might be of grave concern: a potential withdrawal of troops from West Africa.
Forced to Flee. Displaced with a Dream. Time for Action.
Genesis smiles and holds her hand up proudly to answer questions in class. She claps her hands in support of her classmates when they answer the teachers’ questions correctly. “I miss my cousins and aunts in Venezuela, she says.” Her smile fades and her lips tighten. She struggles to hold back her tears. “I can’t return. I want to stay here in my school, with my new friends.” Her smile returns, as she resolutely states: “I want to become a lawyer, so I can help solve problems.”
The Adaptive Age: No Institution or Individual can Stand on the Sidelines in the Fight Against Climate Change
When I think of the incredible challenges we must confront in the face of a changing climate, my mind focuses on young people. Eventually, they will be the ones either to enjoy the fruits or bear the burdens resulting from actions taken today.
World’s Crisis-Stricken Oceans Doomed to Destruction Without a Global Treaty
The greatest single climate-induced threat facing the world’s 44 small island developing states (SIDS) is rising sea waters which could obliterate some of the low-lying states, including Maldives, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Palau and Micronesia.
Nuclear False Warnings & the Risk of Catastrophe
Forty years ago, on Nov. 9, the U.S. Defense Department detected an imminent nuclear attack against the United States through the early-warning system of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). U.S. bomber and missile forces went on full alert, and the emergency command post, known as the “doomsday plane,” took to the air.
IEDs: Tackling Terrorists’ Weapon of War
Some of the most memorable images of the late Diana, Princess of Wales, show her wearing a protective suit while touring a minefield in Angola in 1997 to raise awareness of the devastating effects of land mines.
Despite Halting Progress, UN Continues its Push for a Nuclear-Weapons-Free Zone in the Middle East
A longstanding proposal for a regional nuclear-weapons-free zone (NWFZ) in the Middle East – one of the world’s most conflict-ridden regions – has been kicked around the corridors of UN committee rooms since 1974.
Achieving the Possible: “Weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zone in the Middle East”
A historic conference on the Middle East opened at the United Nations in New York on 18th November and will continue until 22nd November. The Conference on the Establishment of a Middle East Zone Free of Nuclear Weapons and Other Weapons of Mass Destruction is presided over by Ambassador Sima Bahous of Jordan.Next Page »
Is the world dominated by three great empires -- the U.S.A, China and the European Union? How much power do the great behemoths of the south -- India, Brazil, and South Africa -- wield? And where does Russia fit in that equation? Are we in the middle of a new Cold War? What are the implications of the armed conflict with Georgia? What about the new axis: Venezuela-Russia? And what role does Turkey play? What about issues like Climate Change and other global forces like the food crisis and the high energy prices? How is all this reshaping the world's forces? IPS looks for some answers.
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Tracking global progress towards a sustainable world
