For three years, the CCP’s zero-COVID policy in the aftermath of the Wuhan outbreak has included mass lockdowns, excessive testings, heightened surveillance, isolation, quarantines, and border closures. For three years, the CCP has managed to justify the policy by broadcasting how they were able to hold the virus at bay during 2020 and 2021 and how they kept excess deaths to low levels while marginally revitalizing China’s economy after an almost 7 percent sharp decline in GDP.
Met with an enthusiastic round of applause and cheers, US President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law on Aug. 16, 2022. In his address to the American people, Biden triumphantly said the IRA–a bill dedicated to fighting climate change and reducing fossil fuel emissions in a way that will also lower inflation–is one of the most significant laws in American history.
The 27th UN Conference on Climate Change, COP27, saw a pronouncement from French President Emmanuel Macron that the Bezos Earth Fund had pledged $1 billion to protect carbon reserves and biodiversity. With such a prominent pledge, many have begun to ask, what is the Earth Fund, and where is it situated in the architecture of global environmental governance?
There is a saying that the pen is mightier than the sword. It is this notion that one can kill a writer but not their idea. But what do we do when we are living through this transitional period in our culture where our pens are taken away due to this belief that words are violence?
As the recent 20th Party Congress came to a conclusion, Sino-watchers across the globe were less interested in China’s immediate policy direction. Rather, there was a profound sense that the world’s second-largest economic and military power seemed to have gone adrift; or for some, more depressingly, it highlighted the end of an epoch.
Opening up the conversation on climate change and its devastating effects on humanity is key to mitigating these issues. But can soup throwers really change the mind of climate change deniers or the priorities of corporations?
As Putin’s rhetoric and violence continues to increase, and accusations of war crimes mount against the Russian invasion of Ukraine, many around the world are wondering why Russia can’t simply be dismissed from the UN Security Council or at least blocked from voting. In February 2022 Russia Vetoed several Security Council decisions regarding the invasion. Since then, there has been discussion of UN Security Council reform as it has been well established that Putin’s military operation violates the UN Charter on many levels.
On September 16, I watched as Hong Kongers lined up for hours outside the British Consulate in Admiralty, the city’s eastern central business district, to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II. A colossal bed of flowers and pictures of the queen were gradually built up against the consulate walls—it may have been one of the greatest displays of affection for the late monarch witnessed outside the UK.
Although the barrage of news coverage surrounding the Russia-Ukraine war tends to describe the conflict as “unprecedented” and “with no historical parallel,” the underlying interests and tensions that drove Vladimir Putin to invade Ukraine are by no means new.
As the world continues to watch in horror the war crimes committed by Russia, various narratives have emerged to explain the current conflict. In this article, the Russian narrative will be the focus.
As the United States draws down its presence in the Middle East, many in the international community are wondering what actor might step in to fill the supposed power vacuum that will be left in place of the region’s main security broker.
The prospect of China’s superstar real estate giant, Evergrande Group, defaulting on an offshore coupon payment of $84 million sent panic waves across the global investing community.
Although fruits and vegetables are great for our health, sometimes we crave foods that will satisfy our sweet tooth. For many, that means chocolate. Chocolate…
In a world where each nation’s values are so incredibly diverse, one value that most countries agree on—now more than ever—is that of domestic security.…
Theresa May has effectively resigned, putting an end to her long struggle to bring about Brexit. Finally, she has tried to compromise with fellow Tories…
Three decades of dictatorship, gone. Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, rejoiced on April 11th as Omar Al-Bashir was forced out of office. The Sudanese people have never…
The global outpourings of grief, shock, and solidarity were not the only significant outcomes of Christchurch shooting in New Zealand last month. The tragedy also…
The rise of right-wing populism has sparked the demise of democracies across the globe. Whilst this may be true, frankly, our outdated, 20th century educational…
Two ex-police officers were arrested in Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday in connection with former Brazilian Councilwoman Marielle Franco’s death, a monumental step toward justice…
The camp in Dalhamiyeh is among hundreds of informal clusters of Syrian refugee tents in the Bekaa Valley | Photo courtesy Dylan Collins/Al Jazeera When…
Prince Mohammed Bin Salman | Photo courtesy Saudi Press Agency On September 26, 2017—led by Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman—Saudi Arabia issued a Royal Decree…
Photo courtesy: Clip Art A year and 375 meetings later, CreateNYC prepares to release a report on feedback from arts and culture creatives, activists, advocates,…
In December 2016, Turkey’s ruling party, the AKP, together with the ultranationalist MHP party launched a proposal to amend the Turkish constitution. These parties sought…
The majority of Russian-Americans were thrilled by Trump’s familiar rhetoric, isolationism, and friendly view of Russia and Putin, and they were equally delighted when he…
Photo taken in Kosovska-Mitrovica (where the train was being sent). Translated from Russian it means Kosovska Mitrovica: Kosovo is Serbian; Crimea is Russian. | Photo…
On December 7, 1941, the Imperial Japanese Navy attacked Pearl Harbor, in an event unforeseen by the US intelligence community. Yet, as we commemorate Pearl…
In a final installment of JPI’s 2016 election coverage, we bring you two articles, with each writer arguing why their candidate should be elected President…
In a final installment of JPI’s 2016 election coverage, we bring you two articles, with each writer arguing why their candidate should be elected President…
At the Democratic Party’s convention this past summer, Hillary Clinton recited the words of John Wesley—the 17th century founder of her Christian Methodist denomination—during her…
On June 7, Papua New Guinea’s police opened fire on university students who were peacefully protesting against government corruption. Initial reports stated that four students…
When asked to govern themselves, it appears most Americans would rather do other things. Local elections rarely pull more than 30 percent of constituents to…
“We can’t do waterboarding, and they can chop off our heads,” Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said during a CNN interview in March in response…
Ukrainian workers began in mid-March the process of dismantling the country’s largest statue of communist revolutionary Vladimir Lenin. It took them two days to complete…
[A version of this article was previously published here] Americans think that a simple doctor’s visit in Britain means waiting in a Soviet-style bread line.…
On March 2nd, the UN Security Council unanimously voted to impose the harshest sanctions on North Korea in nearly two decades in a multilateral effort…
In August 2001, a Norwegian freight ship carrying 438 refugees attempted to cross Australian waters. The ship’s captain, who rescued the refugees after their boat…
On Feb. 11 news broke of a potential breakthrough in the Syrian Civil War. Russian-backed pro-Assad forces and an umbrella group of U.S.-backed anti-regime rebels…
Power is always partially underwritten by popularity, but modern democracies make the relationship official and exclusive. Popularity is the only widely accepted basis for authority,…
More than 9,000 people were killed in a 7.8 magnitude earthquake that devastated Nepal on April 25, 2015. Four days later, nearly 200 Nepali villagers…
Since the military junta stepped down in 2011, Myanmar began a sustained process of political transformation. President Thein Sein’s administration has paved the way for…
When France’s ecology minister Ségolène Royal implored the world to stop eating Nutella this week, she became the most prominent Western politician to join the…
Even in his death, Lee Kuan Yew, the late Singaporean Prime Minister, has given Taiwan one last gift: the reaffirmation of Taiwan-Singapore relations in an…
In February, the Obama Administration unveiled its latest National Security Strategy, and to no surprise, cyber threats are prominent on the list of concerns. The…
[A version of this was originally posted here] “Hello, happy holidays!” On the cobblestone streets that skirt Plaza de la Catedral and Plaza de Armas,…
It is official. The people of Nigeria have spoken and former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari has won the Nigerian presidential election. Buhari will take over…
[This was originally published here] Thanks to Allah who kept us alive to see the dawn of the Caliphate state reemerge… And Allah’s blessing upon Libya…
[Originally posted here] The Ukrainian government, in an attempt to counter the narrative of the Russian-backed rebels, announced last month that it would be recruiting…
Tens of thousands of Venezuelan students took to the streets of Caracas to peacefully protest against an inefficient government in February 2014. Shortage of food…
After Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netenyahu’s March 3 address to Congress without an invitation from the executive branch, 47 Republican senators circumvented the White House…
The Maldives archipelago inspires images of pristine blue water, white sandy beaches and palm trees. Yet on February 23, a very different image populated…
[Originally posted here] Dawood Ibrahim is perhaps the most notorious “underworld don” in South Asia, involved in everything from supporting terrorist organizations like Lashkar-e-Taiba and…
[Originally posted here] There is a common theme among leaders of oppressive regimes around the world — a rhetorical assertion that the United States is…
[Originally posted here in collaboration with Jorge de Cardenas] On April 17, 2014, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) released its 2013 Global…
[Originally posted here] Since the video statement by al-Qaeda leader Ayman al Zawahiri on September 3 announcing al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent, South Asia has…
Boko Haram, the Nigeria-based terrorist network, has wreaked havoc in West Africa since its reemergence in 2009. The group gained international notoriety for its kidnapping…