ASIA A divide is emerging between how the Asia Pacific region has responded to the Omicron wave of COVID-19, and how North American and Western European countries have responded. East Asia Forum, Jeremy Youde: Asia’s cautious approach to Omicron AUSTRALIA One of the former Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade officials involved with a new […]
Tag: Project-Syndicate
AFGHANISTAN Bamiyan Buddhas and Afghanistan’s Cultural Heritage. Rishika Dhumal, Vivekananda International Foundation: In Afghanistan, Buddhist cave temples are concentrated in three regions: Jalalabad (180 caves), Haibak (200 caves) and Bamiyan (1000 caves). The Bamiyan Buddhas are part of a Buddhist site in Bamiyan Valley of Bamiyan River, 230km northwest of Kabul and 2500m above sea […]
GEOPOLITICS & WORLDS Il 2022 difficile per Joe Biden. Bruce Wolpe per The Strategist: The new year is well underway for US President Joe Biden. It’s not pretty. The Russians are coming at Ukraine. The pandemic is not under control; America this year will come close to one million dead from Covid-19. Inflation is at […]
GEOPOLITICS & WORLDS La sicurezza nell’Europa dell’Est (work in progress) e varie complessità: Pavel E. Felgenhauer per The Jamestown Foundation: Russia and NATO Locked in High-Risk Standoff in Mediterranean and Black Seas Paul Globe per The Jamestown Foundation: Ukraine Crisis Elevates Importance of Gagauz in Russian Calculations Giorgi Menabde per The Jamestown Foundation: Georgians Support […]
In a qualifying match last November for the 2022 soccer World Cup, Iran trailed Lebanon 0–1 at the end of the scheduled 90 minutes. On social media, sceptical Iranians were getting ready to blame their team’s imminent defeat on Iran’s hardline leaders, who supposedly wanted to lose the match in order to please Iran’s Lebanese […]
As 2021 drew to a close, Russia had massed troops near its border with Ukraine, China had flown military jets near Taiwan, North Korea was still pursuing its nuclear-weapons program, and Taliban fighters were patrolling the streets of Kabul. Seeing all this, friends asked me: ‘Whatever happened to soft power?’ Whatever happened to soft power? […]
As Italy scrambles to control surging Covid-19 infections—including by making vaccination compulsory for anyone over 50—cracks are appearing in the broad ruling coalition led by Prime Minister Mario Draghi. A crucial test will come next Monday, when Italy’s 630 members of parliament, 321 senators and 58 regional representatives elect a new president. Presidential election could put Italy’s Draghi-led […]
The Russian threat to Ukraine isn’t the only potential crisis in Eastern Europe this year. Bosnia and Herzegovina is heading for a period of deep political turmoil, with a key election scheduled for October. Bosnia has never been an uncomplicated place. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it generated one crisis after another, […]
With many democracies reeling from the disruptive effects of new technologies, it is easy to be pessimistic about the future of political systems built on individual freedom and political agency. Yet it is still fully within democratic countries’ power to decide which technologies they do and do not want. Technology and the Global Struggle for […]
Unlike the United States, which could spend one-quarter of its GDP protecting its economy from the COVID-19 fallout, Argentina entered the pandemic with the deck stacked against it. Yet, thanks to the current government’s policies to strengthen the real economy, the country has been enjoying a remarkable recovery. Argentina’s COVID Miracle by Joseph E. Stiglitz […]
It has been a year since Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the US Capitol in an attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election, and the future of America’s democratic system remains in question. All eyes are now on the US House select committee’s investigation into the attack and the people behind it. Can US Elections Be […]
Firms like GE and Siemens may well find that their decision to split their businesses into multiple companies leads to increased profits and higher stock prices. But recent research indicates that this is not the only way conglomerates can boost efficiency. How Chinese Competition Helps Western Conglomerates by Dalia Marin – Project Syndicate (project-syndicate.org)