On March 1, Iran held parliamentary elections that, as expected, were neither free nor fair. And yet, despite the ballot being an exercise that was entirely devoid of democratic legitimacy, the event and the results were far from meaningless. Iranians managed to make their voices heard, loudly rejecting the status quo.
A surge in violence in Mozambique’s northern province of Cabo Delgado underscores the complex nature of the conflict there. After a period of reduced activity over the past three years, the insurgency has engaged in a series of high-profile attacks since December, underscoring the need for a more comprehensive approach to the conflict.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill today that would force the Chinese company ByteDance to sell its popular social media platform TikTok or face a ban in the United States.
Washington and Beijing have repeatedly stated their desire to prevent their relations from veering into a severe crisis or conflict. One way of doing this is for each side to offer credible assurances that it won’t threaten the most vital interests of the other. Unfortunately, despite some initial efforts, neither side has done so.
As the U.S. enters an election year, concerns in Europe are growing over Washington’s ability to project power in Europe and the Middle East. Yet this focus often draws attention away from how much the foundations of U.S. global power are anchored in its ability to exert effortless dominance over the Western Hemisphere.
The United States’ planned sea route for delivering aid to Gaza is yet another reflection of how politically costly the Israel-Hamas war has become for the U.S. and President Joe Biden.
Nuclear brinksmanship has been on the rise in recent years, even as anti-nuclear sentiment has never been higher. That makes this moment in the U.S. a good one for reckoning and reassessment. Political science scholarship can guide journalistic efforts in refocusing the national conversation on the perils of a nuclear world.
With tightly controlled parliamentary and local elections in late February, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko installed allied figures in seats of power across the country and rooted out whatever was left of Belarus’ political opposition, thereby extinguishing the last dying embers of his country’s democracy.
The far-right party Chega surged in Portugal’s elections, signaling the end of Portuguese “exceptionalism” and bringing the country in line with much of Europe.
Although President Joe Biden’s approach to Latin America has notched a few victories, pretty much nobody is happy with it. A few big challenges have dominated the agenda for the past few years, without any progress to show for it. They are fueling perceptions of a broader failure that will possibly worsen in the coming months.
French President Emmanuel Macron wants to establish France and Europe as the world’s “third pole of stability” by building bridges with Global South countries. But his credibility is undermined by his consistently demonstrated inability to attend to France’s own Global South—its overseas departments, regions and collectivities.
Back-to-back mass abductions in Nigeria in the past week serve as a reminder that the country’s security crises have not subsided. If anything, they’ve worsened.
Hezbollah and Israel have been locked in limited but deadly conflict for five months, with the violence in danger of escalating into a fuller, more devastating war. Western officials are attempting now to mediate some de-escalation on the Lebanon-Israel front. There is only so much they can do, though, without a cease-fire in Gaza.
The European Union is making efforts to step up in security, proposing a joint defense spending program and setting targets for increased joint weapons purchasing and procurement. But can the EU actually become a security provider, rather than a security consumer dependent on the U.S.? There are good reasons to remain skeptical.
The U.S. is reportedly pressing Haitian PM Ariel Henry to step down amid a standoff between Henry and an alliance of gangs calling for him to resign.
As the strong favorite to win Mexico’s presidential election, Claudia Sheinbaum owes much of her support to the popularity of her mentor, populist President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. But the echoes of AMLO in Sheinbaum’s campaign conceal significant differences that will shape the path forward for Mexico under its next president.
The Baltic states are increasingly asserting themselves on the European and NATO stage. And Latvia is intent on not being left out. But while security concerns are paramount, the government of Prime Minister Evika Silina also has a substantial domestic policy to-do list that may dictate if Latvia can redefine its role in Europe.