Showing 21 - 30 of 162
Nostalgia: It's worse than it used to be
Oped, Published on 07/05/2022
» Before the pandemic, nostalgia was a major force in global politics. Donald Trump promised to "make America great again", and Brexiteers won their political battle partly by idealising Britain's imperial past. While Chinese President Xi Jinping called for a "great rejuvenation of the Chinese people", Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo an pursued neo-Ottoman ambitions, and Prime Minister Viktor Orban lamented the Kingdom of Hungary's territorial losses after World War I.
Slave mentality
Oped, Postbag, Published on 30/04/2022
» Re: "Singapore defends drug crime execution amid outcry over man's IQ", (BP, April 28).
Philippine vanity
Oped, Postbag, Published on 26/04/2022
» Re: "4 runners in presidential race refuse to drop out", (BP, April 19). Due to the poorly structured presidential election process in the Philippines, the winning candidate only needs to obtain more votes than each of the other candidates.
The French election, round two
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 15/04/2022
» French President Emmanuel Macron won the first round of the presidential election last Sunday, but he's still in trouble. He knew he would be. Here's what he said last Saturday.
Illiberal politicians and other threats to democracy
Oped, Published on 22/02/2022
» The emergence of illiberal politicians across the West has led to prophecies about the end of democracy. In the United States, Donald Trump is manoeuvring to return to the White House in 2025, after attempting to overturn an election that he lost in 2020. In France, not one but two far-right populists are running for president. And in Italy, Matteo Salvini of the League and Giorgia Meloni of the post-fascist Brothers of Italy will be plausible contenders for the premiership when Italians go to the polls in 2023.
Global Britain's Indo-Pacific tests
News, Published on 03/02/2022
» It is worth harking back to what Prime Minister Boris Johnson said when he was a foreign secretary: "We should have absolutely no shame or embarrassment in championing our ideals around the world and in this era of dithering and dubitation, this should be the message of Global Britain to the world: that we stick up for free markets as vigorously as we stick up for democracy and human rights." While he may have stumbled on his own rules during the Covid restrictions in the UK, those words he spoke as foreign secretary could not be more relevant to the direction of Global Britain today.
The geopolitics of China's CPTPP move
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 03/12/2021
» Nowhere is the intersection between geopolitics and geoeconomics more evident than the accession negotiations under the 11-member Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). At issue are three new applications for accession by the United Kingdom, China, and Taiwan. While the UK's candidacy alters the geographic crux of what has been Asia-Pacific trade liberalisation, China's and Taiwan's entry efforts represent a proxy showdown between the United States-led global order and 75-year-old alliance system versus Beijing's geostrategic ambitions and objectives.
Aukus poses challenges to other powers
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 15/10/2021
» The Australia-United Kingdom-United States (Aukus) security pact has caused ripple effects across oceans and continents. Not only will the trilateral security partnership provoke China, but it will likely further divide Southeast Asia and overshadow Asean-centred cooperative vehicles, such as the East Asia Summit. Beyond these concerns, the Aukus deal to share Anglo-American nuclear technology to enable Australia's acquisition of eight nuclear-powered submarines over two decades poses challenges to other major powers, particularly the European Union and its key members as well as Japan.
Aukus pact raises geopolitical tensions
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 08/10/2021
» In less than a month, the trilateral security partnership among Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom (Aukus) has stolen the thunder from other geostrategic schemes that have been around for over a decade.
Sensible reopening plan still lacking
News, Published on 27/09/2021
» For countries heavily dependent on tourism, having sensible plans to reopen borders is as vital as curbing the Covid-19 pandemic.