As success in Afghanistan becomes more uncertain, Conn Hallinan argues that the problem is not Afghanistan, but the entire concept of counterinsurgency. Read more
As success in Afghanistan becomes more uncertain, Conn Hallinan argues that the problem is not Afghanistan, but the entire concept of counterinsurgency. Read more
U.S. Special Envoy for Climate Change Todd Stern traveled with Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Arturo Valenzuela to Chile, Peru, and Ecuador last week, to discuss climate change with his government counterparts and civil society. Deepening bilateral and multilateral (...)
Xenophobia is not contained to Europe’s extremist fringes but part of the political mainstream, writes the Forum of Concerned Citizens of Europe in an open letter to Europe’s leaders. Quick-fix political solutions appealing to a mythical Europe of homogenous communities must be replaced by a (...)
Tom Engelhardt, Haymarket Books, 269 pages
Since 2001, Tom Englehardt has written regular reports for his popular site TomDispatch that have provided badly needed insight into US militarism and its effects, both at home and abroad. When others were celebrating the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, he warned of the enormous dangers of (...)
A new world order is emerging from the wreckage of Afghanistan and Iraq, and Turkey will be a major player in it. Read more
A new study warns that trade and investment flows with the South are reinforcing a longstanding trend in which African countries export farm produce, minerals, ores, and crude oil, and import manufactured goods. It says this situation should be reversed while the South-South trend is still in (...)
Zimbabwe is currently the subject of sanctions designed to pressure Robert Mugabe and his colleagues to cease human rights abuses and remove other barriers to democratization in the country. Yet despite some recent positive developments — such as the appointment of independent commissions on (...)
Even if India and Pakistan appear willing to allow more interaction across the Line of Control (LOC) that separates the parts of Kashmir they administer, any Kashmir-based dialogue will fail if they do not put its inhabitants first.
“Steps Towards Peace: Putting Kashmiris First”, the latest (...)
The fact that the Israel-Palestine conflict grinds on without resolution might appear to be rather strange. For many of the world’s conflicts, it is difficult even to conjure up a feasible settlement. In this case, it is not only possible, but there is near universal agreement on its basic (...)
This article was originally published in French by InfoSud. Translation by Jessica Edwards.
May 8, 2010 – The arrival in force of Chinese operators on the African market is forcing both developed and African countries to reevaluate.
“When I want to build a highway, I need five years to (...)
Fifty years on from the beginnings of liberation in Africa, John S. Saul finds there is still much work to be done, especially in southern Africa where the final triumph over colonial and racial domination occurred. In each of the five sites of the overt struggle against domination – Angola, (...)
A South African government agency has become the first to join the world’s leading patent pool for neglected diseases, a move that could bolster home-grown innovations in the fight against diseases including tuberculosis (TB). Read (...)
Written by some of the leading experts on lobbying transparency in Europe, this book provides an eye-opening insight into decision-making within the European Union – and offers a valuable guide to fighting for greater transparency and accountability.
Bursting the Brussels Bubble is a valuable (...)
On his first day in office, President Barack Obama promised that he would close the Bush-era prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, “as soon as practicable” and “no later than one year from the date of this order.” By now, it’s painfully obvious that the rejoicing, like the president’s can-do optimism, was (...)
From the LTTE to the Sinhala chauvinist forces, the Taliban to the forces of Hindutva, we have seen reactionary and rightwing forces attack our communities, but why is our solidarity and mobilisation against such reactionary forces so limited in the region? We have seen the onslaught of (...)
‘There is no doubt that South Africa will become the next frontier for "land invasions"’, writes Grasian Mkodzongi, ‘the situation in the country is a ticking time bomb. It’s almost impossible to think that a system of extreme injustice and poverty reflected across the country could be sustained (...)
In Timbuktu, Islamic Africa is rediscovering its written culture. Charlotte Widemann travelled to the site of the oldest library south of the Sahara to report on the race for influence over this ancient heritage, played out on a small stage of sand and parchment. Read (...)
On the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day: the good, the bad, and the potentially ugly. Read more
Helen Thomas, a veteran reporter, asked the question at a White House press conference on al-Qaeda and terrorism. US administration officials stonewalled. “In these times” asked several contributors with various profiles, including Noam Chomsky and Gaytari Chakravorty Spivak, to provide some (...)
The IBSA (India, Brazil and South Africa) and BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) Summits were held this week in Brazil, both aimed at securing a greater say for top emerging economies in world affairs. Six forums were held in parallel, bringing together women, researchers, journalists, (...)