Global Geopolitics

Funding For Desperate Palestinian Refugees Under Threat

By Mel Frykberg
The U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) faces a severe financial crisis which could see core services to desperate Palestinian refugees in Syria, Lebanon, Gaza and the West Bank halted unless donors step in before the end of September.

Syrian Refugees Face Hunger Amidst Humanitarian Funding Crisis

By Zhai Yun Tan
The United Nations’ food aid organisation, the World Food Programme (WFP), said on Jul. 1 that up to 440,000 refugees from war-torn Syria might have to go hungry if no additional funds are received by August.

Opinion: If You’re Against Coal Mining, Walk In and Stop It

By Dorothee Haussermann and Martin Weis
“If you’re against coal mining, why don’t you just walk into a coal mine and stop the excavators?”

Opinion: BRICS for Building a New World Order?

By Daya Thussu
As the leaders of the BRICS five meet in the Russian city of Ufa for their annual summit Jul. 8–10, their agenda is likely to be dominated by economic and security concerns, triggered by the continuing economic crisis in the European Union and the security situation in the Middle East.

Perfecting Detection of the Bomb

By Ramesh Jaura
An international conference has highlighted advances made in detecting nuclear explosions,tracking storms or clouds of volcanic ash, locating epicentres of earthquakes, monitoring the drift of huge icebergs, observing the movements of marine mammals, and detecting plane crashes.

Bangladeshi Migrants Risk High Seas and Smugglers to Escape Poverty

By Naimul Haq
Though he is only 16 years old, Mohammad Yasin has been through hell and back. He recently survived a hazardous journey by sea, crammed into the cargo-hold of a rudimentary boat along with 115 others.

U.S. Urged to Ramp up Aid for Agent Orange Clean-Up Efforts in Vietnam

By Zhai Yun Tan
A key senator and a D.C.-based think tank are calling for Washington to step up its aid in cleaning up toxic herbicides sprayed by the United States in Vietnam during the war that ended 40 years ago.

Opinion: The ACP at 40 – Repositioning as a Global Player

By Patrick I. Gomes
In his memoirs, Glimpses of a Global Life, Sir Shridath Ramphal, then-Foreign Minister of the Republic of Guyana, who played a leading role in the evolution of the Lomé negotiations that lead to the birth of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States, pointed to the significant lessons of that engagement of developed and developing countries some 40 years ago and had this to say:

High Hopes in Iran as Nuclear Talks Head Into Final Round

By Jasmin Ramsey
A final deal on Iran’s nuclear programme wouldn’t only make non-proliferation history. It would also be the beginning of a better life for the Iranian people—or at least that’s what they’re hoping.

The U.N. at 70: United Nations Disappoints on Its 70th Anniversary – Part Two

By James A. Paul
While member states, weakened in the neoliberal era, have pulled back from the U.N. and cut its budgets, a charity mentality has arisen at the world body. Corporations and the mega-rich have flocked to take advantage of the opportunity. They have looked for a quietly commanding role in the organisation’s political process and hoped to shape the institution to their own priorities.

The U.N. at 70: United Nations Disappoints on Its 70th Anniversary – Part One

By James A. Paul
It is hard to imagine today the public enthusiasm that greeted the founding of the U.N. in 1945.  After massive suffering and social collapse resulting from the Second World War, the U.N. seemed almost miraculous – a means at last to build peace, democracy, and a just society on a global scale.

Security Council Action on Gaza War Crimes a Non-Starter

By Thalif Deen
When a U.N. panel released a 217-page report accusing both Israel and Hamas of possible war crimes committed during the 50-day conflict in Gaza last July, the chances of Security Council action were remote because of the traditional U.S. commitment to stand by Israel – right or wrong, mostly wrong.

Opinion: Sub-Saharan Africa, Addis and Paris

By Jomo Kwame Sundaram and Rudi von Arnim
After the turn of the century, growth in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) picked up again after a quarter century of near stagnation for most, mainly due to increased world demand for minerals and other natural resources.

Opinion: The Oceans Need the Spotlight Now

By Dr. Palitha Kohona
The international community must focus its energies immediately on addressing the grave challenges confronting the oceans. With implications for global order and peace, the oceans are also becoming another arena for national rivalry.

Take Good News on Afghanistan’s Reconstruction With a ‘Grain of Salt’

By Kanya D'Almeida
Since 2002, a year after it invaded Afghanistan, the United States has poured over 100 billion dollars into developing and rebuilding this country of just over 30 million people. This sum is in addition to the trillions spent on U.S. military operations, to say nothing of the deaths of 2,000 service personnel in the space of a single decade.

U.N. Takes First Step Towards Treaty to Curb Lawlessness in High Seas

By Thalif Deen
The 193-member General Assembly adopted a resolution Friday aimed at drafting a legally binding international treaty for the conservation of marine biodiversity and to govern the mostly lawless high seas beyond national jurisdiction.

Worldwide Displacement at the Highest Level Ever Recorded

By Roger Hamilton-Martin
A horrific year of war, humanitarian crises, human rights violations and persecution has caused a sharp rise in global forced displacement.

Pope Could Upstage World Leaders at U.N. Summit in September

By Thalif Deen
Judging by his recent public pronouncements - including on reproductive health, biodiversity, the creation of a Palestinian state, the political legitimacy of Cuba and now climate change – Pope Francis may upstage more than 150 world leaders when he addresses the United Nations, come September.

South Sudan Again Tops Fragile States Index

By Beatrice Paez
For the second year in a row, South Sudan has been designated as the most fragile nation in the world, plagued by intensifying internal conflict that has displaced more than two million of its people.

CTBTO, the Nuclear Watchdog That Never Sleeps

By Thalif Deen
The world’s nuclear powers may succeed in thwarting sanctions by the Security Council or avoiding condemnation by the General Assembly, but they cannot escape the scrutiny of a key international watchdog body: the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO).

Israel’s Deadly Game of Divide and Conquer Backfiring

By Mel Frykberg
Israel’s deadly game of divide and conquer against its enemies could be coming home to roost with a vengeance, especially as the Islamic State (ISIS) grows in strength in neighbouring countries and moves closer to Israel’s borders.
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