Over the past month, Ugandan activists have used an online campaign to publicize deep-seated corruption and extravagant spending by members of parliament. The campaign reflects growing discontent with the government of President Yoweri Museveni, discontent that could eventually spell trouble for the long-ruling strongman.
With climate change affecting weather patterns, water scarcity is no longer an exceptional story—it is now a throughline in global politics.
Russia’s latest electoral charade secured President Vladimir Putin a fifth term in office, meaning he could stay in power until 2036 or even beyond. But what if Putin suddenly dies or decides to step down? Barring a palace coup or a revolution, a half-dozen people within his inner circle are considered possible successors.
After almost two years of stalemate and political wrangling, Northern Ireland’s power-sharing governance system is back up and running. But the latest boycott that paralyzed the government was just the latest in a long line of disputes that has seen Northern Ireland’s dysfunctional legislative body shuttered for long periods.
Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong has resigned after just over a year in office, likely the result of the country’s long-running anti-corruption campaign.
As the U.K.’s Conservative Party hurtles toward an extinction-level event in elections later this year, some observers have pointed to Canada’s elections in 1993 as a fitting precedent for the total collapse of a once-dominant conservative party. Yet for all the similarities, the differences between the two cases are also revealing.
Spain is often lauded for being a great place to raise children. But UNICEF’s latest report card on child poverty among the world’s most affluent countries, released in December, shows a much less rosy picture. Spain sat near the bottom of the list, with more than 1 in 4 children living in poverty and little progress in the past decade.
The Biden administration’s criticisms of Israel have ramped up significantly, creating tensions between the U.S. and Israel that will have implications in both countries.
Though notably quiet this year, China’s annual legislative “two sessions” were still helpful in confirming the direction of Beijing’s economic policies under President Xi Jinping. Rather than implement economic reforms, China will double down on manufacturing and exports, a decision that may exacerbate existing trade tensions.
In the days immediately following Hamas’ brutal attack on Israel on Oct. 7, Southeast Asian states mainly reacted either by expressing solidarity with Israel or expressing sympathy and trying to avoid taking sides in the conflict. Now, more than five months later, much of Southeast Asia has turned more sharply against Israel.
President Vladimir Putin went to great lengths to ensure there were no surprises in Russia’s undemocratic election over the weekend.
The suspension of a Brazilian judge last month as part of an investigation into his links with an organized crime group did not make headlines. But it is a worrying sign of the ever-growing influence of the country’s main drug-trafficking organizations, which have steadily accumulated wealth and power in recent years.
Last week, Brazil’s Supreme Court published documents showing that the country came close to a coup in late 2022. Transfers of power are supposed to be routine formalities in democracies. Yet, from Brazil to Guatemala to the U.S., the hemisphere has seen incumbent presidents attempt to undermine democracy after losing elections.
Senegal’s top opposition leader, Ousmane Sonko, was released from prison yesterday alongside his key ally, just over a week ahead of the country’s presidential election.
On Feb. 28, Guinea’s interim president, Gen. Mamady Doumbouya, appointed a new prime minister, an attempt to address mounting disillusionment toward his military-led transitional government at a time when Guinea’s transition back to an elected government seems to most activists and the political opposition to have stalled.
In recent months, city councils across the U.S.—from Chicago to Boston to San Francisco—have passed resolutions calling for a cease-fire in Gaza. And this is just the most recent occasion in which municipalities have waded into global politics by taking a stand on an issue of war and peace. Why do cities do this? And is it effective?
The world’s poorest countries have yet to regain their pre-pandemic development levels, a sign that the gap between the world’s most-developed and least-developed economies may be widening.