In recent years, many countries have become much bolder about kidnapping or simply killing political dissidents inside the borders of other countries. Southeast Asia was actually in many ways ahead of this trend. In fact, the region has become a hotbed of extraterritorial renditions, disappearances and killings.
Milei’s 30 percent is the same that he won in Argentina’s open primary in August, meaning he didn’t gain any momentum in the past two months.
The Israel-Hamas war has raised serious questions about the political and strategic relevance of the Palestinian Authority. Against the backdrop of recent trends in the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, the war both reflects and exacerbates the PA’s dwindling authority and the Palestinian national movement’s shifting paradigm.
Last week’s news of a deal between the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, the country’s political opposition and—unofficially—the United States guaranteeing a competitive election in 2024 was a temporary win for nearly everyone involved. But we won’t know who the long-term winners are for many months to come.
The Israel-Hamas war is coming at a time when there is little help and little hope for those who need it most in conflict zones.
Debates over the role that shifts in the global order may have played in the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war might seem trivial. But putting discrete events into a global context is valuable, particularly when it comes to conflict, as it can help us anticipate the frequency and kinds of conflicts we are likely to see.
One of the reasons for the ouster of Rep. Kevin McCarthy as House speaker by so-called MAGA Republicans was their opposition to sending more funding and military assistance to Ukraine amid Russia’s war there. The question this raises is: Why? Why is Ukraine aid such a common cudgel for the MAGA wing of the GOP?
No military solution has so far proved effective at combatting jihadist insurgents in the Sahel region of West Africa. Now a new long-shot idea is making the rounds: bringing in Rwandan security forces. However, the “Rwandan model” is no solution for the Sahel’s nightmare. The search for new ideas will have to continue.
Hamas’ attack on Israel and the renewed war in Gaza was probably the final nail in the coffin of the nuclear deal between the U.S. and Iran.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s immediate and forthright solidarity with Israel following Hamas’ attack there stands in stark contrast to his noncommittal response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. But India has compelling reasons to side so decisively with Israel in a conflict with Palestinian militants.
In Nepal, the emergence of Hindu nationalism coupled with attacks on the country’s secularist credentials hint at an organized effort to increase the salience of religion in domestic politics. The stakes are urgent, as the health of Nepal’s young democracy would suffer if Hindu nationalism makes significant inroads there.
Establishing responsibility for the attack is vitally important from a legal and historical perspective, but it is politically irrelevant.
While the world remains transfixed by the Israel-Hamas war, other trends that could prove as consequential for the future of the Middle East are gaining momentum. In particular, an increasingly visible transformation of identity discourses in the Gulf and Iran is setting the scene for further shocks to the regional order.
Flaws in last year’s groundbreaking Inflation Reduction Act, designed to speed the U.S. energy transition, could end up slowing the adoption of electric vehicles. The IRA’s tax incentives for EVs exclude major potential suppliers of critical minerals, including Argentina, where the lithium sector is growing explosively.
While the deal may mark a breakthrough in Venezuela’s political stalemate, there are also plenty of reasons to be skeptical.
Iran’s long-range ballistic missiles long have been the focus of international attention. Over the past two decades, though, Iran has also developed and deployed an increasingly diverse array of shorter-range strike systems. Now, the war between Israel and Hamas has raised the urgency of understanding these other strike capabilities.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s recent visit to China signaled the diplomatic revival he has long hoped for. But Assad walked away from the trip empty-handed when it comes to financial commitments toward reconstruction of Syria’s still-devastated infrastructure. Worse still for Assad, China isn’t alone in its reticence toward Syria.