Crises immediately expose any weaknesses in public infrastructure, and COVID-19 will reveal needs in public health and economic systems. Societies realize that privatization and cost-cutting for health care for vulnerable populations expose all citizens to infection, explains Jayati Ghosh. Analysts...
A gas pipeline extending from the Indian Ocean through Myanmar to Southwest China is scheduled to begin pumping before summer. “At present, about 80 per cent of China’s crude oil imports are transported through the strategically important Strait of Malacca, but the new oil pipeline is expected to...
Click here for the article in The Financial Times.
Both India and Iran have ambitions to be major powers in Asia. With Iran and the US at odds over Iranian nuclear development and conflict in Iraq, India must balance its ties with both. Even though both Iran and India express concern about unipolarity and US attempts to display power throughout...
Since the 1990s, Delhi and Tehran have sought to forge a robust and comprehensive relationship inclusive of energy and other forms of commercial cooperation, infrastructure development in Iran and beyond, as well as...
An Arab Spring may be coming to Saudi Arabia on wheels. Saudi women take to the streets, not for political protests but the right to drive. “Though there are no traffic laws that make it illegal for women to drive in Saudi Arabia, religious edicts are often interpreted as a ban against female...
Click here for the article in CNN.
Holding the third largest oil reserves in the world, Iran is an attractive trade partner, giving it an edge in the world economy. This YaleGlobal series examines Iran’s big power ambitions and its ability to divide the international community to achieve its goal. As Iran rejects demands to end high...
This way, please: Chinese official shows the way to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Shanghai. China's cautious approach to UN sanctions helps Iran
BEIJING: After a diplomatic marathon of several months, China agreed on June 9 with fellow...
Despite apparent attempts by the US to lead the world in every way and area, when it comes to northern Africa and the Middle East, the European Union has its own ideas. Europe's importation of immigrant labor to support its aging population has contributed to a buildup of over 13 million...
Muslim women in Strasburg cafe: Need for young employees leads Europe to look south.
BRUSSELS: As US President George W. Bush prepares for a long-overdue trip to the Middle East, the European Union governments are designing their own blueprint...
In the summer of 2011, the US secretary of state called for a “new Silk Road” throughout Asia, investment in trade and infrastructure to counter extremism. China used the term But then China used the term for its own ambitious plans. “President Xi Jinping launched with fanfare an ambitious New Silk...
In the summer of 2011, then US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton proposed the development of a New Silk Road, a trade and investment program to serve as the foundation for rebuilding Afghanistan’s economy after the US troop withdrawal. At the time...
湄公河是世界上主要的河流之一。它源于西藏，流经中国南部、缅甸、泰国、老挝、柬埔寨和越南，以灌溉农业和渔业的方式为住在沿河盆地上的居民提供生计。但是，堤坝也使该河成为水力发电的提供者。其中三座水坝在中国境内，还有更多的水坝在修建计划中。东南亚研究所高级研究员迈克•理查森（Michael Richardson）指出，如今正是这些水坝威胁着水供应、下游地区居民的生计、以及中国与南部邻邦的关系。小湾水坝是中国境内湄公河段上第四座水坝，预计应当产生42亿瓦特的电力，但它可能影响柬埔寨境内鱼量和越南稻田的水供应。然而，中国指出，控制水流量将阻止湄公河季节性泛滥带来的水土流失，还可以提供可再生能源。...
世界上最高的水坝，中国小湾水坝，给位于湄公河盆地上的国家带来巨大的挑战。
新加坡：回想1986年，当中国开始在湄公河上修建一系列水坝时，位于下游的东南亚国家并不怎么在意。但现在，在这条东南亚最大的河的上游，中国正赶着让第四座水坝完工以进行水力发电，这对该地区潜在的环境影响也愈发引起人们的忧虑。此外，由于害怕与中国对抗，加上东南亚的内部冲突，下游国家不大可能作出协调一致的行动。
中国利用湄公河的动力及改变其自然流向的工程规模浩大，让人警觉，尤其是在 越南、柬埔寨、泰国和老挝。...