Showing 1 - 8 of 8
A new page as France quits key bases in Africa
News, John J Metzler, Published on 02/08/2025
» It's a turning of the page in Franco-African diplomatic relations. For the first time since the decolonisation of the French colonies in the 1960s, there will be no formal French military bases on the African continent.
The Houthi threat to global shipping
Oped, John J. Metzler, Published on 28/03/2025
» Amidst the unpredictable arc of crisis shadowing the Middle East, the systemic and sustained merchant shipping attacks in the Red Sea persist. The culprits are a shadowy but lethal Iranian proxy force, the Houthis, who use their control of mountainous parts of the Yemeni coast to launch missile, drone and speedboat attacks on vital shipping lanes connecting the Mediterranean with the Gulf of Aden.
Global South's climate leadership
Oped, Omar Andrés Camacho & Soipan Tuya, Published on 26/03/2024
» Last month, the International Energy Agency's ministerial gathering took place in Paris, while the African Union, which recently joined the G20, held its annual summit in Addis Ababa. Both fora recognised the urgent need to fulfil the commitments made at last December's United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai, not least to triple installed renewable-energy capacity by 2030. But the challenges ahead are substantial.
Of debt and bondage with Beijing
Oped, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 26/11/2022
» Recently released details of Kenya's 2014 loan agreement with China to finance a controversial railway project have once again highlighted the predatory nature of Chinese lending in developing countries. The contract not only imposed virtually all risk on the borrower (including requiring binding arbitration in China to settle any dispute), but also raised those risks to unmanageable levels (such as by setting an unusually high interest rate). With terms like that, it is no wonder some countries around the world have become ensnared in sovereignty-eroding Chinese debt traps.
Credit Abe with Japan's middle power evolution
Oped, Mark S Cogan, Published on 31/08/2020
» After a record stint at the helm, Shinzo Abe is resigning as prime minister because of health complications. His departure comes in the middle of an epic security dilemma with China and could signal the end of a long pursuit of constitutional changes that would normalise Japan. His tenure in office can be assessed by assertiveness, pragmatic diplomacy, and the creation of partnerships that have propelled Japan from a reluctant sycophant of American foreign policy priorities to a more "proactive" and reliable regional partner.
10 ways to maintain Hun Sen's 'barami'
News, Kavi Chongkittavorn, Published on 11/09/2018
» In the past election spin, it was about barami (charisma). When Hun Sen entered politics in the mid-1970s, nobody thought he would have the staying power to last so long. Thirty-three years ago, he was the world's youngest prime minister. Today, he is still around having outlasted every other world leader to rank as longest-reigning prime minister.
The military threat in China's global plan
News, Hal Brands, Published on 12/06/2018
» For years, most experts believed that China's military challenge to the US was regional in nature -- that it was confined to the Western Pacific. After decades of tacitly free-riding on America's global power-projection capabilities, however, Beijing now is seeking the capabilities that will allow it to project its own military power well outside its regional neighbourhood.
Ethiopia follows China's footsteps
News, Tyler Cowen, Published on 30/05/2018
» Will Ethiopia become "the China of Africa"? The question often comes up in an economic context: Ethiopia's growth rate is expected to be 8.5% this year, topping China's projected 6.5%. Over the past decade, Ethiopia has averaged about 10% growth.