In The News

The Diplomat: After Impeachment Verdict, Korea’s "Fresh Start" On Reform Begins Again

Anthony Fensom March 14, 2017
South Korea’s president was removed from office, and so far the country’s economy and markets are left unfazed. South Korea’s first female president had promised strong economic growth, with a rise in per-capita income, as well as increased tax breaks to encourage investment. Instead, “Exports shrank for two straight years through 2016 and may be further damaged by deteriorating relations with...

US AIDS Program in Africa: Entitlement" or Success?

Ryan Lenora Brown January 30, 2017
Drastic government reform was a cornerstone of President Donald Trump’s campaign, and his actions are fulfilling that promise. His transition team for the US State Department disseminated questionnaires inquiring whether the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief was “worth the massive investment.” Since instituted the by George W. Bush in 2003, the program has contributed more than $72...

The Economic Peril of Aggrieved Nationalism

Martin Wolf January 25, 2017
Humanity is tribal, notes Martin Wolf for the Financial Times, and communities form around shared cultural or national values during difficult times. “Today, as in the past, leaders foment aggrieved nationalism to justify despotism and even war,” Wolf writes. “For much of human history, war was seen as the natural relationship between societies. Victory brought plunder, power and prestige, at...

Worldwide, People Rally in Support of Women’s March on Washington

Karla Adam January 23, 2017
More than 1 million people marched in the United States on January 21 and more than another million joined with at least 650 sister marches around the globe. The goal was to promote human rights, gender equality and a new wave of political activism. “Organizers said that demonstrators wanted to send a bold message to President Trump on his first full day in office that women’s rights are worth...

Taiwan, Thorn in China’s Side, Gets New Attention

Mark Harrison December 6, 2016
Disagreements set aside for too long can calcify, and Taiwan is such an example. The fact that a phone call between US President-elect Donald Trump and Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen kicked up a storm highlights how frozen the differences have become. Mark Harrison, who lectures in Chinese Studies at the University of Tasmania, provides background on the relationship between Taiwan and China...

Italy Sinks Into Political Limbo as Defeat Sweeps Renzi Away

John Follain and Chiara Albanese December 5, 2016
Italy is Europe’s fourth largest economy and the country is falling “into political limbo after Prime Minister Matteo Renzi announced his resignation, with rival parties jockeying to fill the power vacuum following his crushing defeat in a constitutional referendum,” reports Bloomberg. The constitutional reforms were intended to reduce the size of parliament, putting limits on the Senate, and...

Divisions Within Afghanistan’s Government Reach New Crisis Point

Pamela Constable December 1, 2016
Impeachment of seven Afghan cabinet ministers demonstrates the fragility of Afghanistan’s new democratic institutions. President Ashraf Ghani confronts public criticism, and lawmakers accuse each other of abusing power and accomplishing little. Afghanistan’s ethnic divisions complicate the debate over governance. This instability follows more than a decade of US involvement in the country, and 10...