In The News

Russia Cabinet Resigns: DW

January 16, 2020
Russia struggles to transition away from President Vladimir Putin’s leadership. In power for two decades, Putin announced constitutional reforms that could influence the parliamentary elections in 2021 could keep him in power beyond 2024. Russian law prohibits him from running for a third consecutive six-year term. In the past, Putin and former Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev abided by the law by...

President Tsai Reelected: Taiwan News

Keoni Everington January 14, 2020
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen was reelected in a landslide victory with 57 percent of the vote. The economy and excessive Chinese control were top issues. China had cut off contact with the Tsai government; protests disrupting Kong since June also troubled Taiwanese voters. “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) told the media Sunday (Jan. 12) that officials from more than 60 countries had...

A Hong Kong Generation Criminalized: CNN

James Griffiths and Jessie Yeung December 24, 2019
More than 6,000 people have been arrested for protesting in Hong Kong. That number could climb as authorities review surveillance recordings. The protests began in June over a bill allowing extradition of accused to China. “The early demonstrations were legally-approved marches, however, almost everyone who has attended protests in recent months has been at an event deemed unlawful,” reports CNN...

Lebanon and Syria Sinking in Debt: The Economist

December 23, 2019
Effects of Lebanon’s recent political and economic crisis, stemming from a drop in remittances and bank deposits, have spilled over into Syria. The two nation’s economies have been intertwined for some time. Following the Lebanese civil war (1975-90), Syrian workers helped rebuild the war-torn country. Lebanese banks were once “a safe place for wealthy Syrians to park their cash [and] since the...

Wrecking the WTO: Times of India

Nayan Chanda December 18, 2019
US President Donald Trump seeks partners in his push to rebalance global trade, reduce global agreements with environmental and other constraints, and build US influence based on power rather than cooperative alliances. He views the UK’s Boris Johnson as a likeminded leader, after an overwhelming victory in parliamentary elections all but ensures Britain’s speedy exit from the European Union....

Boris Johnson and Conservatives Win in UK: BBC

Laura Kuenssberg December 13, 2019
Boris Johnson risked calling an election and won decisively with his call to get Brexit done. Solid results remove Brexit uncertainty as voters entrust the Conservative Party, which won 364 votes of the 650 required, to manage exit from the European Union. “The Conservative Party's Commons majority is its largest since Margaret Thatcher won a third term in 1987,” reports BBC News. Many...

India’s Parliament Passes Citizenship Bill: NYT

Jeffrey Gettleman and Suhasini Raj December 12, 2019
India’s parliament has approved a Citizenship Amendment Bill, expected to be signed into law soon.The bill “uses religion as a criterion for determining whether illegal migrants in India can be fast-tracked for citizenship” and “favors members of all South Asia’s major religions except Islam,” reports the New York Times. Muslim leaders regard the measure as discrimination; up to 15 percent of the...