In The News

The Guardian: Trump Pulls US Out of UN Global Compact on Migration

Patrick Wintour December 8, 2017
Citing its commitment to US political sovereignty and strict immigration policies, the Trump administration has pulled the country of the United Nations’ global compact on migration. The announcement came within hours of the opening of a UN global conference on migration in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. According to Patrick Wintour of the Guardian, “The UN had always insisted that the compact was...

CNN: Brexit Breakthrough in Brussels

James Masters and James Griffiths December 8, 2017
The European Union and the United Kingdom reached agreement on the latter’s exit while maintaining some ties. “Crucially, the two sides reached a deal on the historically sensitive issue of the Irish border, which had threatened to derail the talks as they reached a critical moment earlier this week,” reports CNN. “Discussions can now move on to the potentially tougher issue of a future trading...

The Guardian: Abbas Warns World Leaders Over Trump's Recognition of Jerusalem

Peter Beaumont December 7, 2017
Mere days before Donald Trump announced that the United States intends to recognize Jerusalem as capital of Israel, President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas made a last-ditch effort to rally diplomatic support against such recognitionl. “Abbas placed a series of phone calls on Sunday with world leaders both to ‘explain the dangers of any decision to move the embassy to Jerusalem or...

El País: Brussels Pushes for European Version of IMF

Claudi Pérez December 6, 2017
The European Union is proposing its own version of a bailout fund modeled after the International Monetary Fund. “With initial firepower of €500 billion, which could be boosted up to a further 20%, the new European Monetary Fund will bail out member states in exchange for reforms, as the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) has done in the past with Greece, Ireland and Portugal,” reports El País....

Middle East Eye: “'Huge Implications” for Moving US Embassy to Jerusalem

Ali Harb December 6, 2017
Donald Trump, recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, plans to relocate the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The plan overturns seven decades of US policy. Most countries maintain embassies in Tel Aviv and the surrounding area, and a few maintain consulates in Jerusalem. “While the decision may cement Washington’s pro-Israeli bias, analysts say, its symbolism insults not only...

Reuters: Source Claims Deutsche Bank Gets Mueller Subpoena

Arno Schuetze and Nathan Layne December 5, 2017
The US rule of law has a long reach. US federal investigators looking into Russian interference of the 2016 presidential election are reported to have asked Deutsche bank for data on accounts held by associates of Donald Trump and his family. “Germany’s largest bank received a subpoena from Special Counsel Robert Mueller several weeks ago to provide information on certain money and credit...

The Atlantic: Saleh's Death in Yemen Sends a Message to Other Dictators

Krishnadev Calamur December 5, 2017
Allegiances change swiftly in the Middle East as a brutal proxy fight escalates between Saudi Arabia and Yemen. The death of Yemen’s former President Ali Abdullah Saleh “at the hands of Houthi rebels who were his allies just a few days ago, shows not only the perils of that balancing act, but also the political shifts in a country wracked by civil war since 2015,” reports Krishnadev Calamur for...