Global Geopolitics

Inside a Wagon in the Forest of Compiègne

By Manuel Manonelles
What is the link between the current civil war in Syria, the austerity policy imposed by Germany during the last economic crisis or the Arab-Israeli conflict? Its origin, which lies in the world that was born a hundred years ago, inside a wagon in the middle of the Forest of Compiègne, northeast of Paris.

Brazilians Decide on a Shift to the Right at Any Cost

By Mario Osava
Voters in Brazil ignored threats to democracy and opted for radical political change, with a shift to the extreme right, with ties to the military, as is always the case in this South American country.

Women’s Climate Leadership More Vital Than Ever In Light Of Climate Change Report

By Osprey Orielle Lake and Emily Arasim
The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, which arrived thunderously in October, concludes that we have only 12 years remaining to transform our energy systems and ways of living to limit the worst effects of climate change.

Trump and Bolsonaro: Alarming Similarities

By Brent Millikan
Observing recent political developments in the United States and Brazil, there are clearly similarities between the phenomena of 'Trumpism' and 'Bolsonarism' that do not seem to be a mere coincidence.

An Ounce of Democracy

By Abdoulaye Mar Dieye
As the old adage goes: “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. Nowhere is this more appropriate than when it comes to conflict. Violent conflict causes not only human suffering and destruction but robs entire societies of development and growth.

Trump’s Counterproductive Decision to “Terminate” the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty

By Daryl G. Kimball and Kingston Reif
Under the influence of his new National Security Advisor, John Bolton, Trump announced Saturday at a campaign rally that he will “terminate” a key nuclear arms control agreement that helped end the Cold War race–the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty in response to a long-running dispute over Russian noncompliance with the treaty.

Women as Liberia’s Guardians of Peace

By Franck Kuwonu, Africa Renewal
Not long ago, images of child soldiers and the nation of Liberia were wedded in the minds of the international community. The country was struggling to end a horrific civil war, but military efforts were going nowhere.

New Agreement with Canada and U.S. Is Win-Lose for Mexico

By Emilio Godoy
Following the fanfare of the countries' leaders and the relief of the export and investment sectors, experts are analysing the renewed trilateral agreement with Canada and the United States, where Mexico made concessions in sectors such as e-commerce, biotechnology, automotive and agriculture.

G20 Women’s Summit Pushes for Rural Women’s Rights

By Daniel Gutman
Rural women play a key role in food production, but face discrimination when it comes to access to land or are subjected to child marriage, the so-called affinity group on gender parity within the G20 concluded during a meeting in the Argentine capital.

The Case for a U.S. No-First-Use Policy

By Daryl G. Kimball
Stanley Kubrick’s classic 1964 film “Dr. Strangelove” delivers an eerily accurate depiction of the absurd logic and catastrophic risks of U.S. and Russian Cold War nuclear deterrence strategy, but for one key detail: President Merkin Muffley was wrong when he said, “It is the avowed policy of our country never to strike first with nuclear weapons.” But it should be.

Seize the Opportunity Offered by Africa’s Continental Free Trade Area, says UNIDO Chief

By Li Yong
Since the turn of the millennium, Africa has experienced a steady and unprecedented economic growth. However, poverty continues for people across the continent, especially in the sub-Saharan region. Unemployment and inequality have remained high. The rural population and the urban poor, women and youth, have not benefited from economic growth.

First Steps Towards a Global Agreement on the High Seas

By Andrew Norton
The world’s first efforts to develop a way to govern the high seas – international waters beyond the 200 nautical mile national boundary – is truly underway. The initial round of negotiations at the United Nations has just ended after two weeks of talks.

UN Expects More Upheavals as Trump’s Foreign Policy Runs Wild

By Thalif Deen
The unpredictable Donald Trump, described by some as a human wrecking ball, will be walking down his own path of self-inflicted destruction when he visits the United Nations next week.

An Urgent Need to Turn Down Rhetoric Against Migrants & Refugees

By Carl Söderbergh
Migration has become a focus of debate in recent years. From United States President Donald Trump’s vehemently anti-migrant and anti-Muslim rhetoric to Denmark’s new ‘ghetto laws’, the language has become increasingly heated.

25 years Since the Oslo Accords: Israeli Security Depends on Palestinian Rights

By Jan Egeland
Twenty-five years ago, on 13 September 1993, I sat on the White House lawn to witness the landmark signing of the Oslo agreement between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). Diplomats around me gasped as Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin shook hands with former foe, Chairman Yasser Arafat. But for some of us present, the handshake came as no surprise.

Trump at the UN – a Dramatist Seizes an Opportunity

By James Paul
Donald Trump, as we know, is first and foremost a showman. He is a person who loves theatrics and tries always to stay in the spotlight. In his habitual theater at the White House, however, the air has become tense, the audience unreliable, his efforts to attract an adoring crowd increasingly frought.

Law of the Sea Convention Expands to Cover Marine Biological Diversity

By Palitha Kohona
Responding to a persistent demand by developing countries, the conservation community and science, the UN General Assembly has commenced a process for bringing the areas beyond national jurisdiction in the oceans under a global legally binding regulatory framework.

International Law Experts Warn Europe’s ‘Pull Back’ of Migrants is Illegal – Part 2

By Maged Srour
“The Italian and other European authorities are engaging – on the migration issue – in a policy which has the foreseeable results of numerous deaths.” It is a grim warning from expert on international law, refugees and migration issues, and member of the Global Legal Action Network (GLAN), Itamar Mann.

UN Begins Talks on World’s First Treaty to Regulate High Seas

By Thalif Deen
After several years of preliminary discussions, the United Nations has begun its first round of inter-governmental negotiations to draft the world’s first legally binding treaty to protect and regulate the “high seas”—which, by definition, extend beyond 200 nautical miles (370 kilometers) and are considered “international waters” shared globally.

Amid Chronic Violence, Millions of Afghans Face Risks of Drought Related Displacement

By Enayatullah Azad
Amid a precarious security situation in Afghanistan, the worst drought in recent history, that hit two out of three provinces in Afghanistan in July, has destabilized the lives of tens of thousands of civilians, some of whom have already been displaced.

UN Seeks Probe into Saudi Bombing of Civilian Targets

By Thalif Deen
Saudi Arabia, which has been accused of relentlessly bombing civilian targets in strife-torn Yemen and threatening executions of human rights activists, is fast gaining notoriety as a political outcast at the United Nations.
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