Western Climate Hypocrisy Exposed by NATO Energy Policy

NATO geopolitical strategy has now joined the ‘coalition’ of Western geoeconomic forces accelerating planetary heating, now led again by re-elected US President Donald Trump.

First Vietnam, Then Afghanistan: Is Ukraine Next?

 
The ongoing war in Ukraine has raised difficult questions for U.S. foreign policy. With U.S. and Russian leaders engaged in direct talks in Saudi Arabia over the future of the conflict, many are left wondering whether the Ukraine crisis could become another Afghanistan or Vietnam—two conflicts where the U.S. pursued peace talks with its adversaries while sidelining local governments, leading to catastrophic outcomes. Drawing lessons from these past negotiations and the eventual collapse of South Vietnam in 1975 and the Republic regime in Afghanistan in 2021, one cannot help but wonder whether Ukraine could face a similar fate unless the U.S. carefully navigates these talks with a more inclusive approach.

Bangladesh Economy: Turning Demographic Challenges into Opportunities

Speaking at the recent annual conference of the Bangladesh Administrative Service Association, Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus has emphasised the need to create opportunities for young people, asserting that Bangladesh’s large population is not a burden but a valuable resource.

Tensions Between Israel and Hamas Threaten Second Phase of Gaza Ceasefire

On March 1, the first phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire was scheduled to end. However, as Israel continues to block humanitarian aid from entering Gaza, and Hamas declining to release more hostages until the second phase goes into effect, the long-term feasibility of the ceasefire agreement is uncertain. Additionally, U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent inflammatory comments surrounding the conflict between the two parties might put further strain on the already fragile ceasefire agreement.

Society’s Self-Sabotage: How Discrimination Cripples Nations

One look at the headlines recently and anyone would know that cuts to foreign aid are jeopardizing hard-won progress on a range of issues. AIDS is one of them.

The Worldwide Demographic Ageing Transformation

Country populations worldwide are experiencing the demographic ageing transformation. The relatively young populations experienced during most of the 20th century are increasingly being transformed into the older populations of the 21st century.

Siddis of India—a Unique Community Moves Into the Mainstream With Tourist Venture

The Siddi community, descendants of slaves from Africa, is now becoming more involved with mainstream enterprises, including a forest homestay venture—which is changing their fortunes after years of discrimination on the Indian subcontinent where they were originally enslaved.

A Cash Crisis Forces UN to Re-Figure its Budget and Freeze Staff Hiring

Faced with an impending cash crisis primarily due to non-payment of dues by the US and over 100 other member states-- along with threats of a US withdrawal from the world body-- there were widespread rumors the United Nations was re-costing and reducing its approved budget for 2025 while deciding to freeze hiring new staffers.

Addressing the Scars of Abuse: A Global Call to Protect Girls and Secure Their Futures

In March 2000, 15-year-old Binta Manneh was eager to test her skills at an out-of-town interschool sports competition. That night, as she stepped out to buy biscuits from a nearby shop, she encountered paramilitary officers – men sworn to protect the nation.

International Women’s Day, 2025
Rule Breakers: The Compelling True Story of Afghan Girls Who Risked All to Learn

Like the Afghan robotics team, Education Cannot Wait (ECW), the global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises in the United Nations, is breaking the 'rules' and continuing to educate young women in that country despite an edict from the Taliban denying girls a secondary school education.

Developing a Thriving e-vehicles Value Chain in Africa

African countries should join hands to make the most of their own resources and build a formidable electric vehicle ecosystem that could help fast-track realisation of SDGs.

Solutions To TB and HIV Benefit All of Us, North and South

In the west of Kenya, near the shores of Lake Victoria, where I come from, a tuberculosis outbreak is no different from one that takes place anywhere else in the world. A few dozen people get sick, health workers attempt to locate and test everyone with a bad cough and other symptoms. A concerted effort is made to make sure that patients take their medications for the entire duration of treatment, at least six months, to help stem the creation of drug-resistant infections.

International Women’s Day, 2025
UN: Women’s Rights Face ‘Unprecedented’ Pushbacks

Girls and women worldwide are facing growing threats to their security and rights, from threats to their education access to severe poverty and multiple forms of violence. In 2024, nearly one in four governments worldwide reported a backlash to women’s rights, as a new report from UN Women reveals.

How the Arts Play a Role in the Fight for Nuclear Disarmament

This week countries and communities converge in New York for the 3rd Meeting of State Parties on the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), with multiple side events to address the social, political and cultural impact of nuclear abolition across different sectors.

International Women’s Day, 2025
The Quest for a Female UN Secretary-General: Assessing the Probability

The United Nations has chosen “For ALL Women and Girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment.” as the theme for International Women’s Day on March 8, 2025. This theme emphasizes the importance of equal rights, power, and opportunities for all women and girls, urging action to create a feminist future where no one is left behind.

Nuclear Weapons, Far from Diminishing, Keep Rising

The United Nations, whose primary mandate is to maintain international peace and security, has been one of the longstanding leaders in the global campaign for a world without nuclear weapons. But the progress has been relatively slow – despite the growing number of anti-nuclear treaties. Perhaps the only consolation is the absence of a nuclear attack or a nuclear war in over 80 years.

Öcalan’s Letter: Between Dismay and the Kurds’ Need to Believe

"The PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) should dissolve. I make this call and take historical responsibility," read the letter from Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned leader of the Kurdish guerrilla, on Thursday, 27 February.

Our Silence on Female Genital Mutilation in Sierra Leone Will Not Protect Us

Over 200 million women and girls around the world have undergone female genital mutilation (FGM). This is the partial or total removal of the external female genitalia for non-medical reasons.

Stitching Hope: Two Afghan Women Rebuild Their Lives with Needle and Thread

Zainab and Mursal, two young Afghan women, had their education cut short by the Taliban. But instead of surrendering to despair, they picked up a needle and thread—transforming their skills into a thriving sewing business that now provides income and inspiration to other Afghan women.

Solar Energy Sustains the Development of Amazonian Communities in Brazil – VIDEO

Electricity is essential for the well-being and prosperity of traditional riverside communities in the Amazon, as demonstrated by the experience of the Santa Helena do Inglês community, located on the right bank of the Negro River in northern Brazil.

International Women’s Day, 2025
In Zanzibar, Women Turn the Tide with Sponge Farming

In the early morning, as the tide pulls away, Zulfa Abdallah ties her scarf tightly around her head. She adjusts her goggles, places a snorkel across her forehead, and wades into the chest-deep waters off Jambiani village in Zanzibar. The Indian Ocean is her livelihood now, its waves offering a lifeline to women like her who confront challenges of poverty and climate change.