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War – What is it good for?
Robert Wihtol | January 13, 2025Veteran American journalist Bob Woodward’s latest book “War” examines the current spate of conflicts around the world and highlights the worrying implications of Donald Trump’s simple minded narcissism in dealing with them.
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Gradually, then suddenly
Michael Pezzullo | January 11, 2025Ernest Hemingway observed in The Sun Also Rises that bankruptcy occurs gradually and then suddenly, and this should also be treated as a rule of geopolitical affairs.
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Tales of Taiwan
John West | January 8, 2025Taiwan has evolved from its autocratic origins to rank as the most democratic nation in Asia, as well as the most economically dynamic, but these attributes have increased China’s determination to crush the former and absorb the latter, the same motivations as Russia’s disastrous invasion of Ukraine.
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After Assad
Ali Mamouri | December 9, 2024With its Russian and Iranian allies stretched and distracted elsewhere, a swift assault by rebel forces has brought about the humiliating fall of Syria’s brutal Assad regime.
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A world on the move
David Uren | December 4, 2024Global migration flows have risen to record levels since the pandemic, driven by economic opportunity and conflict, and are facing a widespread policy backlash.
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Why sanctions don’t work
Babak RezaeeDaryakenari | December 2, 2024Economic sanctions have long been used as a nonviolent foreign policy tool to influence the behaviour and policies of targeted states. While they are often effective in prompting policy changes in democratic countries, they frequently fall short in altering the course of authoritarian regimes.
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A kick up the pants
Jolyon Ford | November 29, 2024If populist attacks on traditional multilaterial institutions catalyse much-needed engagement, reform and revitalisation, they might unintentionally offset some of the damage their own rhetoric does to the legitimacy of those bodies.
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Chain, chain, chains
Chris Ogden | November 28, 2024Trump’s return has normalised and supercharged authoritarianism around the world, making it the rule rather than the exception.
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UN blues
Anil Anand | November 20, 2024The 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly comes at a time when trust in the rules-based international system, capitalism, and democracy has waned dangerously low. Middle powers like Canada and Australia, with proven legitimacy and exemplary records for multilateral cooperation on security and human rights challenges, must therefore do more to redouble support for multilateralism.
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Who will defend Europe?
John West | November 15, 2024Keir Giles’ “Who Will Defend Europe?” is a well-written and insightful examination of Europe’s parlous security situation, threatened by Putin’s aggression to the East and Trump’s ill-considered isolationism from the West.
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Europe holds its breath
Gianluca Pastori | November 2, 2024The spectre of a second term for Donald Trump is horrifying enough but whatever its result, the US election may widen rifts between the United States and Europe, given long-standing concerns about trade, defence, and geopolitical cooperation.
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Smoke and ashes
Peter Thilly | October 24, 2024In his new book ”Smoke and Ashes,” Amitav Ghosh takes the reader through a broad, yet deeply personal exploration of opium’s history, its trade and consumption, as well as how it shapes the world we live in today.