In The News

People’s Daily Online: Foreigners, KFC and “Authentic” Chinese Food

June 12, 2017
Chinese restaurants can be found around the globe, and the cuisine has inspired dishes like General Tsao’s chicken. “The U.S. alone has around 40,000 Chinese restaurants, even more than the sum of McDonald's outlets and KFCs,” notes People’s Daily Online. “Now, business in China has become a main source of profit for KFC, which has started selling soy bean milk, Chinese-style breakfast...

Project Syndicate: Brexit Strategy for a Weak UK Government

Ngaire Woods June 12, 2017
By calling for a snap election, Prime Minister Theresa May weakened rather than strengthened her hand in approaching negotiations with the European Union over Brexit. Negotiators have less than two years to reach a deal or request an extension. So far, Britain is making three elementary negotiating mistakes, explains Ngaire Woods for Project Syndicate. The country’s leaders have framed the...

The Guardian: UK General Election Result to Impact Brexit Talks

Jon Henley June 9, 2017
Political leaders in democracies need solid support before embarking on sweeping policy changes. In Britain, Theresa May miscalculated in calling for a general election to strengthen her hand before Brexit negotiations. Instead, the snap election, with a greater turnout by young voters, resulted in a hung parliament. The country remains divided over how to proceed on Brexit - in the 2016...

Brookings: The $110 Billion Arms Deal to Saudi Arabia Is Fake News

Bruce Riedel June 8, 2017
During Donald Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia in May, he announced a $110 billion arms deal, a claim reported by YaleGlobal and other media. “Only problem is that there is no deal,” writes author Bruce Riedel. “So far nothing has been notified to the Senate for review. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency, the arms sales wing of the Pentagon, calls them ‘intended sales.’ None of the deals...

Haaretz: ISIS Assault on Tehran May Lead to Surprising Alliances in the Middle East

Zvi Bar'el June 8, 2017
Islamic State terrorists struck the Iranian parliament and Khomeini shrine in Tehran, leaving 17 dead. Throughout the region and stretching into Afghanistan and beyond, the terrorist group has targeted Shias, moderate Muslims and anyone that does not agree with their extremist goals. Conspiracy theories abound, and war in Syria has fueled extremism, attracting jihadist fighters from around the...

The Globe and Mail: Trudeau Decides It’s Not Worth Appeasing Trump in Foreign-Policy Shift

John Ibbitson June 7, 2017
America has left the world, said Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland in a landmark foreign policy address as reported by John Ibbitson for the Globe and Mail, and allies must hang together while awaiting the country's return. “The fact that our friend and ally has come to question the very worth of its mantle of global leadership puts into sharper focus the need for the rest...

Paris Innovation Review: New Silk Road as a New Worldview?

Hervé Machenaud June 7, 2017
Representatives of about 100 nations participated in China’s New Silk Road Forum in May. Some in the West express concerns about the Silk Road initiative and the companion Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. China has invested in developing its own infrastructure and now hopes to do the same for developing nations while increasing its own expertise spreading good will. The projects have...