Diplomacy & Politics Archive

On Dec. 7, 2016, Ghanaians are scheduled to vote in the country’s seventh general election since the return of multiparty politics in 1992, when Ghana transitioned from military to civilian rule. Ghana is considered to be one of Africa’s most mature democracies. Presidential term limits are firmly in place. Political power has peacefully alternated between the country’s two main parties, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP). Electoral disputes have generally been resolved through the electoral commission or the courts, and not through violent means. Ghana is often praised for its stability, peace and democratic development. […]

Will the next American president be able to save Syria? No. What about the international norm of preventing atrocities against civilians? Again, no. That’s ultimately the takeaway from the short exchange about Syria in Sunday’s mostly awful Town Hall-style debate between U.S. presidential hopefuls Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. While Trump is more aligned with President Barack Obama’s reticence toward escalating America’s military involvement in Syria than Clinton, neither candidate offered any big new ideas about the conflict. The long-term worry is not just about how the obvious limits to American power in this crisis will affect other issues, but […]

Recent visits to Cuba by a bevy of European and Asian leaders highlight a key element of Raul Castro’s foreign policy that he has pursued alongside normalization with the United States: Don’t put all of Cuba’s eggs in one international basket. Cuba learned this lesson the hard way. Pre-revolutionary dependence on the United States, followed by post-revolutionary dependence on the Soviet Union, twice plunged Cuba into economic crisis when those ties were severed. Although less drastic, the current austerity triggered by the decline in oil shipments from Venezuela underscores the danger of relying on a single foreign partner. Cuba’s leaders […]

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani was in Vietnam this week, the first stop of a three-nation tour of Southeast Asia. During his visit, Rouhani and Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang agreed to work toward the goal of boosting trade to $2 billion. In an email interview, John Calabrese, an assistant professor at American University, discusses Iran’s diplomatic outreach in Southeast Asia. WPR: What is the state of diplomatic and economic ties between Iran and Southeast Asia, particularly Vietnam, and what areas and sectors present the best opportunities to deepen relations? John Calabrese: Iran’s interactions with Southeast Asia are not new. Iranian […]

One of the mantras of the U.S. Marine Corps is that every Marine is first and foremost a rifleman, regardless of their actual military occupational specialty. Whether accurate or not, that reflects an idea that has historically animated all militaries: Those who actually fight with enemies are seen as the centerpiece and the model. All the rest of the military are expected to reflect the capabilities, psychological characteristics, moral foundation, ethos and physical attributes of fighters. This idea, call it the “warrior mindset,” has become so deeply ingrained in the American military that it is seldom discussed or analyzed. But […]

Over the past decade, the United States and the Philippines have bolstered what was already a strong strategic and diplomatic relationship with deep historical roots and a 65-year treaty alliance. During the George W. Bush administration, after 9/11, the U.S. launched a training and assistance program for the Philippine armed forces, designed to help combat terrorist networks based in the southern Philippines, especially Abu Sayyaf. For a time, a significant detachment of U.S. Special Forces was based there, training Philippine soldiers. Under the Obama administration, the U.S. and the Philippines have moved even closer together. For the past six years […]

In this week’s Trend Lines podcast, WPR’s senior editor, Frederick Deknatel, and host Peter Dörrie discuss the cost of U.S. inaction in Aleppo, the attack on humanitarian aid workers in South Sudan, and Germany’s struggle to integrate more than one million refugees. For the Report, Richard Gowan joins us to talk about U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s legacy and the challenges facing the next secretary-general, Antonio Guterres. Listen:Download: MP3Subscribe: iTunes | RSS Relevant Articles on WPR: Can the U.S. Afford the Cost of Inaction in Aleppo? Attack on Aid Workers in South Sudan Was an Attack on Humanitarianism Itself Germany’s Asylum-Seekers […]

In late August, Turkey launched operation Euphrates Shield, a cross-border military incursion into northern Syria to secure two primary goals: prevent the Kurdish People’s Protection Units, or YPG, from further expanding west of the Euphrates and push the self-proclaimed Islamic State away from the Turkish border. A little over a month in, the operation has certainly achieved these initial goals, but Turkey’s longer-term exit strategy, and whether the intervention will expand deeper into Syria, remain unclear. Euphrates Shield has enough manpower to take small villages, but the number of Turkish troops and allied rebels is inadequate to take al-Bab, a […]

Last month, the Seychelles’ president, James Michel, resigned after his political party, known as Parti Lepep, lost parliamentary elections. Vice President Danny Faure will be sworn in later this month to complete the remainder of Michel’s five-year term. In an email interview, Yolanda Sadie, a professor at the University of Johannesburg, discussed politics in the Seychelles. WPR: What were the main issues that dominated the recent elections in the Seychelles, and what explains the opposition Linyon Demokratik coalition’s victory? Yolanda Sadie: Economic issues dominated the election. During the campaign, the incumbent Parti Lepep, or People’s Party, highlighted its achievements of […]

In late May, amid the chaotic lead-up to the United Kingdom’s referendum on its membership in the European Union, British newspaper The Times published an article alleging that the EU was scheming to establish an “EU army,” but intended to keep its plans secret from British voters until the day after the June referendum. The story was among the flurry of articles published by British media eager to stoke skepticism toward the EU ahead of the Brexit vote. The report spread quickly, and other outlets seized the opportunity to embellish. “Britain will be forced to join an EU ARMY unless […]

The international community got ahead of itself when it celebrated the peace agreement between the Colombian government and the FARC insurgency before it was a done deal. It is now making the same mistake again, grieving the death of peace after Sunday’s failed referendum. In fact, the chances for a peace deal in Colombia still look promising after voters rejected the agreement that had produced a premature popping of the champagne. Reaching another deal will not be easy. But there is a real possibility that Colombia could go through a process that would help it tackle not only the half-century-old […]

For too long, there has been little accountability in Brazilian politics. Corrupt politicians often benefit from both an intricate and lax judicial system and public opinion that seems to be, in many cases, overly lenient toward cases of corruption. The proverb that “Caesar’s wife must be above suspicion” could apply to every Brazilian politician—and not just their spouses. Many suspicious or even formally suspected figures lurk in the sizable shadow of doubt that looms over the country’s political landscape. Almost 40 percent of Brazil’s lawmakers are currently under some kind of investigation. Beneath this blanket of impunity, though, some promising […]

The race to become the next United Nations secretary-general has reached its conclusion. After months of extensive speculation and uncertainty, the Security Council informally announced that former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Guterres has been chosen for the job, with a formal vote scheduled for tomorrow. WPR columnist Richard Gowan has closely followed the race to succeed Ban Ki-moon. This compilation of his analysis assesses the organization that Guterres will inherit and explains what’s at stake moving forward. The following 8 articles are free to non-subscribers until Oct. 19. Ban’s Legacy For Obama-Ban Odd Couple, Farewells but No Victory Lap at […]

BELGRADE, Serbia—It is expected to join NATO next year and is in pole position to become the European Union’s next member. A Mediterranean paradise increasingly popular with the glitterati, it is forecast to have one of the world’s fastest-growing tourism industries over the next decade. It has also, in effect, been ruled by the same party since World War II. Critics say that it has chronic problems with organized crime and corruption that are intertwined with the political elite and state institutions. The past year has seen anti-government protesters take to the streets, accused of supporting Russia’s interest in derailing […]

In August, reports emerged that South Sudanese soldiers had violently attacked foreign aid workers during a July rampage in the capital, Juba. They took hostages and raped several women at a hotel popular with foreigners, and also killed a local journalist. During the four-hour siege, those held captive at the Terrain Hotel repeatedly called for help to the United Nations peacekeeping force—stationed less than a mile down the road—and the U.S. embassy in Juba, but none came. Beyond the horrible violence the hostages endured, the attack reflected a litany of systemic failures to safeguard foreign aid workers who seem to […]

Should the United States use military means to try to stop Syrian and Russian forces from massacring the civilian population of Aleppo? If the answer to that question is no, then what level of atrocity is the U.S., and the world, willing to tolerate in Syria—and elsewhere—before intervening? The questions in isolation are relatively straightforward to answer. But when we consider them in tandem, the answers become mutually incompatible. This is the crux of the tragedy of the Syrian civil war for those not condemned to suffer its terrible consequences directly. At first glance, the case for intervening on humanitarian […]

Editor’s note: This article is part of an ongoing WPR series on the status of women’s rights and gender equality in various countries around the globe. A recent report by Human Rights Watch called out the government of Nepal for not doing enough to stop child marriage. Currently 37 percent of girls marry before age 18, and while the government has pledged to end child marriage, few concrete steps have been taken to achieve this goal. In an email interview, Claire Naylor, the co-founder and executive director of Women LEAD, discusses women’s right in Nepal. WPR: What is the current […]