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Sunday, April 26, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
Global Geopolitics
Middle East Part II – 99.5 Years of (Imposed) Solitude
One hundred years ago, on 6 May 1916, two men, Briton Sir Mark Sykes and French diplomat François Georges-Picot, were entrusted by their respective governments with a rather exceptional task.
The Over-Written, Under-Reported Middle East – Part I: Of Arabs and Muslims
Of all over-written, under-reported issues and regions, the Middle East is perhaps one of the oldest, outstanding ones.
Did Argentina’s Elections Mark Start of Shift to the Right in South America?
Different degrees of economic problems are a common denominator in South American countries where governments that identify as leftist may start to fall, in a shift that began in Argentina and could continue among its neighbours to the north.
Opinion: From European Union to Just a Common Market
The success in the recent Swiss elections of the UDC-SVP, a xenophobic, anti European Union, right wing party, opens a number of reflections.
Opinion: The Nuclear Deal’s Impact on Iranian Domestic and Foreign Policy
As in most countries, in Iran too there are hardliners and moderates. All polls show that a large majority of Iranians support the nuclear deal (or Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, JCPOA) between Iran and the P5+1 (the United States, Russia, China, Great Britain, France and Germany), while a small but powerful group of hardliners opposes it. The Iranian parliament has finally approved the deal, but after a great deal of controversy and with some reservations.
United Arab Emirates and Cuba Forge Closer Ties
Cuba and the United Arab Emirates agreed to strengthen diplomatic ties and bilateral cooperation during an official visit to this Caribbean island nation by the UAE minister of foreign affairs, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan.Human Rights Activists Condemn Houthi Militia’s Atrocities Against Women in Yemen
(WAM) -- Arab and Yemeni human rights activist monitoring the civil war in Yemen say that women have been subjected to grave human right violations at the hands of the rebel Houthi militia and an allied insurgent group under the command of former president Ali Abdullah Saleh.Report Condemns Atrocities of Houthi Rebels in Yemen
(WAM) - A new report from a human rights group operating in Yemen says that human rights violations have reached unprecedented levels, with more than 3,000 people murdered by the insurgent Houthi militia and its allies in Yemen.
Iran’s commitments under the Nuclear Treaty are just short of total surrender
Speaking about the framework agreement on Iran’s nuclear programme that was reached between Iran, the P5+1 (China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, United States plus Germany) and the European Union, Joseph Cirincione, a leading nuclear expert and president of Ploughshares Fund, said:
The Rubicons That Have Been Crossed
In their attempts to sabotage Iran’s nuclear program, the United States and Israel have resorted over time to a number of unorthodox, illegal and in some cases criminal methods to achieve their aims. They have included the following:UAE Government Stresses its Abiding Support for Syrian Refugees
In response to suggestions that the Gulf states are doing littleor nothing to help Syrians fleeing their civil war, the Government of the United Arab Emirates has announced that it has take a broad range of supportive actions to alleviate the suffering of the Syrian population and to care for Syrian refugees in Syria and abroad, reports WAM.Nuke Test Ban Treaty Still in Limbo, U.N. Complains
The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), which was adopted by the U.N. General Assembly back in 1996, has still not come into force for one primary reason: eight key countries have either refused to sign or have held back their ratifications.
Opinion: Iran and Nuclear Weapons, a Dangerous Delusion
Despite all the propaganda about the Iranian leaders’ rush to acquire nuclear weapons, ever since the start of the country’s nuclear programme, Iranian leaders have been adamant that they only wish to make peaceful use of the nuclear energy to which they are entitled as a member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).UAE Continues Relief to Syrian Refugees in Lebanon
(WAM) - Under the directives of the President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), efforts are underway to provide relief to the Syrian refugees in Lebanon. A strategic humanitarian plan has been put in place by the country which includes shelter to refugees closer to Lebanon in order to facilitate their return home when the crisis is over.
Campaign to End Nuclear Tests: Kazakhstan Launches ATOM E
Despite United Nations General Assembly resolutions since 1946, calling for an end to lethal arsenal, the possession of nuclear weapons has continued to be a symbol of scientific sophistication or military power, until 29 August 1991, when Kazakhstan, upon gaining independence, closed its Nuclear Test Site in Semipalatinsk - the second largest in the world.
The Recent Stages of Iran’s Nuclear Programme
When negotiations between Iran and the European “Troika” broke down, the reformist government of Mohammad Khatami was discredited in the eyes of the Iranian electorate which had seen the futility of negotiating with the West.
Africa Sees U.N. Climate Conference as “Court Case” for the Continent
As the clock ticks towards the United Nations climate change conference (COP21) in Paris in December, African experts, policy-makers and civil society groups plan to come to the negotiation table prepared for a legal approach to avoid mistakes made during formulation of the Kyoto Protocol.Strong Climate Deal Needed to Combat Future Refugee Crises
Climate change has been held responsible many of the social and economic woes affecting mainly the poorest in the global South and now many are seeing it as one of the root causes of refugee crises.
In and Behind the Trenches Against ISIS
Reminders of the last occupants of camp K1 in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk are only visible on the murals at the main gate leading into the compound: Iraqi soldiers saluting the flag, pointing their weapons or being cheered on by grateful families.
Opinion: The Early History of Iran’s Nuclear Programme
Iran has had a nuclear programme since 1959 when the United States gave a small reactor to Tehran University as part of the “Atoms for Peace” programme during Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi’s reign. When the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) was introduced in 1968 and entered into force in 1970, Iran was one of the first signatories of that Treaty.
Young Cubans Look Forward to Greater Openness to Technology
Young people in Cuba are anxiously awaiting an acceleration of the informatisation of society, which is apparently moving ahead at the same pace as the current reform process, “without haste, but without pause,” according to the authorities.« Previous Page — 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.
The Week with IPS
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Tracking global progress towards a sustainable world
Tracking global progress towards a sustainable world
